Seven bodies, including that of a one-year-old girl, have been recovered from the rubble of two buildings that collapsed in Greater Noida on Tuesday night.
Officials on Wednesday said around 50 more people are feared trapped in the debris.
A six-floor under-construction building collapsed and crashed against a five-storey residential building next to it, bringing it down as well, in Greater Noida’s Shahberi village. At least 12 labourers were in the under-construction building and all of them are feared trapped, Chief Fire Officer Arun Kumar Singh said.
A man, whose mother, wife and one-year-old daughter were confirmed dead in the incident, said that the body of his brother has still not been recovered.
“We had moved into the apartment just four days ago [July 14],” said Ram Trivedi.
Complicated operation
Two bodies were pulled out of the rubble late on Tuesday and another was removed on Wednesday morning as the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the fire department and the police mounted a rescue operation. On Wednesday evening, four more bodies were recovered.
Four NDRF teams, around 160 men, are searching the rubble for signs of life. An NDRF official said that the way one building was titled onto the other was complicating operations. Rescue dogs, two hydraulic cranes and six bulldozers are part of the operation.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered a probe into the case and on Wednesday ordered the suspension of two Greater Noida Authority officers. The district administration has also ordered a magisterial inquiry. The police have lodged an FIR against 24 people and four persons, including the landowner, have been arrested.
Sources said that the under-construction building likely collapsed due to too much moisture in the walls of the basement and use of poor construction material. Both the buildings were unauthorised.
The FIR has been registered under Sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 388 (extortion by threat of accusation of an offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life), 288 (negligent conduct with respect to pulling down or repairing buildings), and 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees) of the IPC.
The arrested are Gauri Shankar Dwivedi, Quasam, Dinesh and Sanjeev.
A woman at the site claimed that her husband, who was working as a labourer at the under-construction building, was also missing.
