Anthony Bagan: Portion of an old building collapses, none injured

kolkata: A portion of an old building on Anthony Bagan Lane off Sealdah collapsed on Sunday morning.

No one was injured. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation workers and their counterpart in the Disaster Management department removed the debris.

A portion of the old building collapsed around 11am. The balcony caved in with a loud gong. The shop owner on the ground floor had a providential escape as he had gone out of his shop when the accident took place. There was no one in the second floor at the time of the accident.

Senior civic officials said the building had not been declared as dilapidated. It had not been repaired for several years. They said the old buildings which had not been repaired for years posed a serious threat as in most of them the rain water pipes had chocked due to lack of maintenance. During monsoon, the water cannot go out and they get accumulated on the roof putting pressure on the foundation. The weak foundation could not bear the additional load and collapsed.

The civic authorities have urged the borough executive engineers to keep a tab on old buildings that are situated in their areas during monsoon and take necessary action. The civic authorities have informed the police about the dangerous and dilapidated structures where the occupants have refused to vacate despite repeated requests. The KMC has requested owners of such buildings to get in touch with it and submit a building plan incorporating rehabilitation of the tenants. The old building will be pulled down and the KMC will give additional FAR to the builder.