Punjab CM orders judicial probe into building collapse

Tribune News Service

Mohali, February 8

Taking serious note of the building collapse near Kharar in the district, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh today asked the Additional District Magistrate (ADM), Mohali, to conduct a thorough probe into the incident and submit the report within a week.

A spokesman for the Punjab Government said Capt Amarinder Singh also directed the district administration to take all possible steps to rescue those trapped in the debris. He said according to information received from Deputy Commissioner Girish Dayalan, one person had died while two others were still trapped under the debris. He said two persons been rescued so far and rescue operations were going in on a war footing.

He said as per the orders of the Chief Minister, the entire cost of the treatment of those injured in the incident would be borne by the state government.

According to the Deputy Commissioner, preliminary information suggests that digging work was on at an adjoining site for construction of a basement when the structure collapsed.

The probe would also ascertain if the construction was illegal or not, the spokesperson said.

The teams of the district administration led by the SDM and the ADC rushed to the spot and emergency services, including fire tenders and medical teams, were also called in. The NDRF teams with specialised equipment were pressed into service and an additional team from Ludhiana had also been called to the site.

The Western Command of the Army were on stand-by and their engineers would also join the rescue operation, if needed, the spokesperson said, adding that some machines like hydra crane from L&T had been locally arranged for clearing the debris. The NDRF would also use their canines to trace anyone buried or trapped under the debris before the rescue operation was called off, he added.

Kharar MLA Kanwar Sandhu visited the spot and said all illegal constructions going on in his constituency should be probed. Former Punjab Minister Jagmohan Singh Kang and senior Congress leader Kanwar Singh Sidhu also visited the spot.