As several people were feared to have been buried alive after an under-construction flyover in Kolkata collapsed on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is currently away on a three-nation tour, expressed shock and sadness over the loss of lives and instructed all possible Central help in rescue and relief operations.
Meanwhile, home minister Rajnath Singh, who briefed the Prime Minister about the rescue and relief operations underway to extract those trapped, directed the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to engage all its resources in the rescue efforts.
The home minister told NDRF director-general O.P. Singh to send adequate rescue personnel so that all trapped people could be saved, official sources said.
Mr Singh is currently touring West Bengal to campaign for BJP candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.
“Shocked & saddened by collapse of under-construction flyover in Kolkata. Took stock of the situation & rescue operations,” Mr Modi, who is in the US on an official visit, tweeted.
“My thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives in Kolkata. May the injured recover at the earliest,” he said in another tweet.
A portion of an under-construction flyover collapsed in busy north Kolkata, killing several people and leaving scores of others trapped under the debris.
In a statement, the Union home minister said that he was deeply saddened to know that precious lives have been lost in the Kolkata accident.
Two teams of the NDRF comprising about 80 personnel have been rushed to the flyover collapse spot. The NDRF DG said that the teams are being sent from their local base at Rajarhat, near Kolkata airport. The accident spot is about 13 km from the NDRF base.
“The teams are well equipped to immediately conduct rescue operations. They will do that exactly as soon as they reach,” DG Mr Singh said.
Minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju said, “It is a disaster. It has to be responded to as a disaster. We are ready to provide additional forces if necessary,” he told reporters.
Mr Rijiju said a report has been sought from the West Bengal government on the incident and that will give a clear picture on how it had happened.
“A report will automatically be generated. It will tell us what actually had happened,” he said.
The minister said the mishap had taken place at a very crowded place and it could have been avoided by taking adequate precautionary measures. “Safety measures must be taken. There are prescribed norms for safety at construction sites. It is a matter of investigation whether safety measures were taken or not,” he said.
Mr Rijiju, however, refused to hazard a guess on whether the incident was sabotage. “I don’t want to speculate on anything,” he said.
He said currently the priority of the rescue teams is to clear the debris and save as many people as they can. The minister said all injured are being provided treatment by the state government.
Mr Rijiju said after the rescue operations are over, adequate compensation would be given to the victims.
