B'luru building collapse: CM visits site, says officials will be held responsible

Bengaluru, Oct 24 (IANS) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday said that if buildings come up illegally, the concerned officials will be held responsible. 

He said this while visiting the site where an under-construction building had collapsed on Tuesday in which eight people died. He also announced Rs 5 lakh compensation to the families of each deceased person.

Speaking to reporters after visiting the building collapse site in Babusapalya, CM Siddaramaiah said he could not visit early as he was not in Bengaluru and had gone to Wayanad in Kerala.

"Eight persons have died in the tragedy and their bodies have been recovered. "Eight other people have been rescued. Of them, six are injured, with three sustaining serious injuries. But all six injured persons are out of danger, and the government will fully cover their medical expenses,” he announced.

"The families of the eight deceased persons will get Rs 5 lakh each as compensation. Rs 2 lakh will be provided by the Labour department and Rs 3 lakh will be given by the Bruthat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). It won’t compensate for life. As victims hail from the labourer families, the compensation has been provided. The authorities will make all possible efforts to send the dead bodies to their respective places," CM Siddaramaiah stated.

He said, "This was an unauthorised construction in the revenue layout which has come up without license. The notices were issued in this connection, and even after the issuing of the notice, the construction was carried out. In this background, we have suspended the concerned assistant executive engineer."

“I have directed to issue notice to the concerned zonal officer who is an IAS officer. The executive engineer in this jurisdiction will also get the notice. The government is also thinking of providing compensation to those who are injured along with the cost of the treatment. We will decide on the amount of the compensation,” CM Siddaramaiah informed.

“I appeal to the people that they have to build houses as per the law and they should not construct the house against the rules. No one should build unauthorised buildings. They should have stopped the construction when the government issued notices. They did not stop it,” he stated.

"The owner, contractor or any other concerned persons should have stopped the work and this unfortunate incident would not have taken place. Everyone should obtain a license for constructing buildings. It has to be inspected by the assistant executive engineers," he emphasized.

"The quality has to be maintained. This building has collapsed due to mediocre work and not because of the rain. It is not because of rain, it is because of substandard work that the building collapsed," he reiterated.

“The government will take all necessary actions in this regard. In future, I have told the BBMP Commissioner not to allow the construction of unauthorised buildings. If buildings come up illegally, the assistant executive engineer, executive engineer and zonal officer will be held responsible. I have clearly instructed BBMP Commissioner Tushar Girinath in this regard,” he stressed.

When asked about notices already issued to unauthorised buildings during the previous BJP government, CM Siddaramaiah stated it is a continuous process, some have approached the court and some have gone to the appellate authorities.

The deceased labourers hailed from Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The police have arrested two persons, including the building owner and slapped a culpable homicide case against them.

--IANS

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