17 killed, 2 injured after wall collapses in Pune’s Kondhwa, Fadnavis orders probe

At least 17 people were killed as a portion of the compound wall of a residential complex collapsed on shanties following incessant rains in Pune, police said Saturday. The shanties were built for the labourers working at a construction site nearby, they said. The compound wall collapsed around 1.45 am Friday night in the Kondhawa area, an official said.

Police, fire brigade and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel rushed to the spot and launched rescue operation, he said. Three injured were admitted at a nearby hospital, he said.

“The wall collapsed due to heavy rainfall. Negligence of the construction company is coming to light with this incident. Death of 15 people is not a small matter. Mostly were labourers from Bihar and Bengal. Government will provide help to the affected,” said District Collector Pune, Naval Kishore Ram.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Saturday ordered an in-depth inquiry into the incident of wall collapse in Pune, in which 15 people were killed. “Extremely saddened to know about loss of lives in the Kondhwa, Pune wall collapse incident. My deepest condolences to the families and praying for speedy recovery of the injured. Directed Pune Collector to conduct an in-depth enquiry,” Fadnavis said on Twitter.

#UPDATE Pune: Death toll rises to 14 in Kondhwa wall collapse incident. Rescue operations are underway. #Maharashtra https://t.co/MYaGtSzKku

— ANI (@ANI) June 29, 2019

On Friday, three persons were killed and five others injured in rain-related incidents in Mumbai, which received the first spell of heavy rains this monsoon. Few hours of incessant rains left the financial capital struggling with the familiar monsoon woes of waterlogging, delayed trains, traffic jams and choked drains.

Three persons died of electric shocks, while two others were injured in two separate incidents in the western suburbs, a spokesperson of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said.

The deceased were identified as Kashima Yudiyar (60), a resident of Andheri (East), Rajendra Yadav (60) and Sanjay Yadav (24) - both from Goregaon (East), said civic official.

Two people suffered injuries in the Goregaon incident and were admitted to a local hospital, he said. The police were inquiring into the Goregaon electrocution incident, he added.

Three others were injured when a portion of a wall collapsed in Dadar (East). They were admitted to the civic-run KEM Hospital.