Satya Niketan building collapse: Demolition of adjoining girls' PG begins, MCD demolishes 24 buildings so far

Days after a five-storey building collapse in south Delhi's Satya Niketan left at least seven people dead and five injured, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on Tuesday began the controlled demolition of an adjoining building that officials said had been declared dangerous. The move came as the civic body stepped up action against unsafe and unauthorised structures in the city.

Even as demolition work moved ahead in Satya Niketan, residents in north Delhi's Nehru Vihar raised fresh concerns over repeated structural problems in another building, alleging that a faulty sewer line had caused it to tilt multiple times over nearly a decade and that repeated complaints to civic agencies had gone unaddressed.

Satya Niketan demolition begins

An MCD official said the demolition of the building next to the collapsed structure began during the day and was halted in the evening. "We started demolition of the adjoining building today, and the work was stopped in the evening. The demolition exercise will resume tomorrow morning," the official said.

The adjoining building housed a girls' paying guest accommodation and was evacuated after the collapse of the neighbouring five-storey structure on Sunday. On the same day, the MCD issued an order for property number 13 in Satya Niketan, directing the owner or occupier to tear down the structure, saying it posed a threat to residents and nearby buildings. MCD officials had earlier said the students had already vacated the building and were returning only to collect their belongings before the demolition.

Residents in Nehru Vihar flag repeated tilting

In a separate development, residents had earlier complained that a building in Nehru Vihar had tilted multiple times over nearly a decade, allegedly because of a faulty sewer line, and claimed that civic authorities had neglected the issue. A resident told reporters that the building was demolished and rebuilt once, but developed the same problem again within a couple of years.

The resident said the structure, which is not more than eight years old, was most recently reconstructed around three years ago. "We keep complaining, but no one listens. Before this, no government body – neither the Jal Board nor the MCD – carried out proper maintenance," the resident alleged. The person also alleged that at least 400 dwellings in the nearby F Block of Gandhi Vihar were tilting in one direction or another. The Delhi Jal Board and the MCD did not immediately respond to queries.

Crackdown after fatal collapse

According to data updated till Tuesday, the MCD has demolished 24 properties and sealed seven illegal structures since the Satya Niketan collapse. The incident has put the spotlight on unauthorised construction in the city and drawn criticism of the civic body. The issue also led to the suspension of five engineers, including the deputy commissioner of the south zone.

On Monday, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta met senior government and MCD officials and directed authorities to carry out inspection drives in paying guest accommodation hubs, especially in houses that have prima facie violated height and floor restrictions. Sandhu also directed the chief secretary to ensure that structural audits of all buildings in PG hubs are carried out within a week.

The civic body said that on Monday it demolished seven properties and sealed two others. It also issued 26 show-cause notices for unauthorised construction, four show-cause notices for sealing and 12 demolition orders across the national capital. On Tuesday, the corporation carried out demolition action against 17 properties and sealed five more in its drive against unauthorised construction. It also issued nine show-cause notices for unauthorised construction, two show-cause notices for sealing and 15 demolition orders.

MCD officials said action has been taken across all 12 zones of the civic body, particularly in Laxmi Nagar, Vishwas Nagar, Mukherjee Nagar, Jamia Nagar, Shaheen Bagh, Tilak Nagar, Karam Pura, Karol Bagh, Ramesh Nagar, Mansarovar Garden, Chandni Chowk and Nehru Vihar. Most of these areas have a substantial student population.

Officials said that between September 1 and 8, the MCD carried out demolition action against 48 properties and sealed 15 properties. During the same period, it issued 90 show-cause notices for unauthorised construction, 124 show-cause notices for sealing and 66 demolition orders.

From June 1 to August 31, the MCD demolished 959 properties and sealed 456 properties, while issuing 1,461 show-cause notices for unauthorised construction, 590 show-cause notices for sealing and 687 demolition orders. Overall, between June 1 and September 8, the MCD carried out demolition action against 1,007 properties and sealed 471 others, and issued 1,551 show-cause notices for unauthorised construction, 714 show-cause notices for sealing and 753 demolition orders.