Kalyan building collapse: unauthorised work suspected to be cause; flat owner arrested

A flat owner has been arrested for allegedly carrying out illegal work which is suspected to have caused a slab collapse claiming six lives in Kalyan area of the district, officials said on Wednesday.

Flooring work in a fourth-floor flat at Saptashrungi building apparently caused its slab to crash through four stories on Tuesday afternoon, police said.

A two-year-old girl was among those killed in the incident while six people were injured. Krishna Lalchand Chourasia (40), resident of flat no 401, was arrested on late Tuesday night under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 125 (act endangering life or personal safety of others) besides the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966, said senior inspector Ganesh Nhayade of Kolsewadi police station.

"He carried out flooring work illegally without taking permission from the authorities," the official said, adding that further probe was underway.

The remaining building will be demolished as it was no longer safe for inhabitation, said Kalyan sub-divisional officer Vishwas Gujar.

The 30-year-old building is located in a densely populated locality in Kalyan East. It was not on the list of buildings declared as dangerous for living, officials said