MillenniumPost
Bengal

One killed, two injured in wall collapse

A man was killed and two others were injured after a portion of the balcony   and parapet wall  of KIT   housing  in Panchanantala   in south Kolkata collapsed  on Monday afternoon.

The victim was identified as Kamala Chatterjee. Police and fire brigade personnel went to the spot shortly after the incident and rescued the persons who were trapped. They were taken to other places. Officials of disaster management personnel visited the spot along with a team of the building department of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC).

 The KMC officials said the buildings which were built 50 to 60 years ago  had not been repaired for 
many years. After the accident, those who had been trapped under the debris have been rescued.  
The KMC will decide whether the dangerous portions of the structures will be pulled down or not only after getting report from the officials of the team that had visited the spot.

A senior official of KIT said most of the flats were vacant. He said that though the flats needed immediate repair, nothing has been done for many years because of financial crunch. 

The flats are rented out and despite requests, the owners have refused to buy them. In Left Front regime ,the KIT sold many flats to the tenants.  

Senior civic officials said maintenance of old buildings had become a major issue in Kolkata. 
Most of the old private buildings in north Kolkata had not been repaired for ages. 

Similarly, many old flats built by KIT needed immediate repair. As the property belongs to the state government, KMC could not declare them as “ insecure and dilapidated structure.”
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