Another wall collapses in city

Compound wall, internal road of Ghatkopar building caves in

In another wall collapse in the city, a portion of a housing society’s compound wall and internal road caved in on Friday in Ghatkopar. The incident took place at 5 a.m. after the wall of the adjoining nullah collapsed. No injury to life or property was reported. Sources said that the compound wall was built on the nullah’s wall.

The society, Kalpataru Aura on LBS Road comprising 17 towers with 1,247 flats, has registered a complaint with the BMC. The internal road cracked open and about 30 metres of the 500-metre wall collapsed.

Cracks in the wall

Jagdish Shetty, secretary of the housing society, said, “We have been writing to the BMC since we noticed the cracks in the wall last year. But the builder just did some patchwork. On Tuesday, we noticed that the crack had widened. Civic officers did an inspection but no action was taken. The wall collapsed just three metres from our parking lot and 20 metres from our building.”

The residents had stopped parking cars near the compound wall fearing a cave-in. The nullah’s porous wall led to seepage into the building, making the structure weak. Pravin Chheda, a former corporator, said, “The residents are in a state of panic. The collapse could have led to loss of life or property. The BMC should initiate an inquiry and take action against the errant officers.”

Bhagyashree Kapse, Assistant Municipal Commissioner, N Ward, said, “We have removed the damaged portion of the wall and strengthened the ground. A new compound wall will be constructed on the nullah. The damage caused to the building is the responsibility of the society and builder.”

Structure weakened

A spokesperson for the builder said, “The compound wall was built 10 years ago with appropriate permissions on a private stretch of land in the society. The nullah is maintained by the BMC. However, desilting and dredging by different agencies led to led to weakening of the wall.”

The spokesperson said the concrete wall of the nullah had collapsed at certain points leading to difference in its height and weakening of the housing society’s compound wall.