Thane: The death toll in the Bhiwandi building collapse in Maharashtrarose Tuesday to 25 with the recovery of a dozen more bodies overnight, police said. The number of those rescued has gone up to 25, with five more persons being pulled alive out from the debris since Monday night, police said.
The dead include 11 children aged between two to 11 years, an official said. Those rescued are being treated at hospitals in Bhiwandi and in this city, added the official. Search and rescue personnel are still at the site, trying to pull out a few more persons still feared trapped, he informed.
The 43-year-old ‘Jilani’ building collapsed at 3.40am Monday.
Also read: Death toll in Maharashtra building collapse rises to 17
Two civic officials have been suspended in connection with the collapse. A case has been registered against the building owner, an official informed.
The building in the powerloom town – which is around 10 km from here – had 40 flats and around 150 persons lived there, an official said. The building was not in the list of dilapidated structures of the Bhiwandi-Nizampur Municipal Corporation (BNMC), he added.
A resident of the building which collapsed said most of them were tenants. He informed that most of the tenants were auto-rickshaw drivers, vendors and labourers.
A civic official said the building was served two notices, one in 2019 and another in February, over alleged irregularities. However, the residents continued to stay there as the rent was low.