Delhi: 4 children, 2 women killed as building collapses in Ashok Vihar

New Delhi: A five-storey "weak" building collapsed in northwest Delhi on Wednesday, killing four children and two women, three weeks after the 20-year-old structure was inspected by a municipal team following complaints.

Police have registered a case under IPC Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), punishable with a maximum jail term of 10 years, against the owner Dharmender, who had rented out the building in Ashok Vihar.

A complaint was lodged about the building being dangerous on August 16, 2017 and a team of civic body had inspected the building around 20 days ago, the police said.

Two teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were mobilised for rescue operations, its spokesperson said.

The ground floor of the building housed a shop, which was closed during the incident, while the second, third and fourth floors were occupied by tenants. The first floor was vacant. There were 12 people inside the building when it collapsed. The injured were rushed to Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital.

A family lived on the second floor of the building. Two of the children, who were killed in the incident were siblings, Ashi, aged three, and Shaurya, aged two. Their mother, Seema, succumbed to injuries in evening. Two families were living on the third floor. The deceased woman, Munni, was living in one of the houses on the third floor. The second family living on that floor lost two children, Rajnesh, aged four, and Sumnesh, aged 12, the police said. The fourth floor was occupied by a couple -- Narottam and Nisha. Nisha is critical, the police said.

Bimlesh, who was present at the hospital and whose sons were Rajnesh and Sumnesh, said, "As soon as I left home and had barely walked a few metres, I heard a loud noise and when I turned back, I saw the building collapse like a pack of cards. I am waiting to hear about the condition of my family members."

Locals claimed that along with the building, a sheesham tree, adjacent to the building, also fell. A call about the incident was received at 9.25 am and six fire tenders were rushed to the spot near Sawan Park, an officer said.

A senior North Delhi Municipal Corporation official said the building was about 20 years old. Its structure was weak and in a deteriorated condition, the official added.