Date:25/10/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/10/25/stories/2008102550220100.htm

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All still hazy at Prestige building-collapse site

Karnataka Bureau

Two employees of construction firm arrested

BANGALORE: Work on tracking down whether any construction worker is trapped or was killed when a part of the 15-storeyed Prestige Shanthiniketan building under construction at Whitefield collapsed here on Thursday is yet to get under way.

Director-General and Inspector-General of Police R. Sri Kumar, who has been closely monitoring the developments, told The Hindu that “as of now there appears to be no death or even any person missing. We have videographed the entire structure and this should throw some light on whether any person has been trapped or killed. A full-fledged investigation is on.”

Varying accounts of the number of people who were at the work spot when the building collapsed and their whereabouts at present, if they are safe, have added to the mystery. Reports have it that soon after the accident all the workers were taken away in lorries.

Soon after the collapse, the police rushed a disaster management team comprising personnel of the Fire Services, Home Guards and the police to the spot but they could do little as concrete slabs had collapsed and were hanging precariously between the pillars of the structure.

Arrested

The Kadugodi police acting on a complaint of the jurisdictional executive engineer of Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (Mahadevapura Sub-Division), arrested Ravi Hoskoti, vice-president and in-charge of the project, and Nanda Kishore, commercial project in-charge. Both are employees of the Malaysian construction company, IJM.

The BBMP has also lodged a complaint with the Kadugodi police against Congress MP from Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, D.K. Audikesavalu (who is the owner of the land on which the structure is being built), and the senior executive engineer of Prestige Group, the senior site engineer of the project and the chief architect of the building.

Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) Commissioner H. Siddaiah said a case of negligence had been lodged against the builder. “The BDA sanctioned the plan for the building in 2004. We are getting the building material samples tested by experts,” he said.