Vacant building collapses in Cantt

Pune: A part of an empty building in a lane off Dastur Meher Road collapsed on Friday afternoon.
According to eyewitnesses, the building has long been in a precarious condition and has been subject to multiple notices from the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) because of its condition. The last tenant in the building left around 10 years ago, but residents alleged the current leaseholder of the building had not undertaken any renovation.
"The condition was quite bad for many years.We frequently saw notices being pasted on its gates because of lack of repair. But the leaseholder did nothing," said Rashida Shaikh, living in a building near the collapsed structure.
After the news of the building collapse spread, the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) officials and police rushed teams to the spot with equipment and excavators. An old woman, staying under a flight of stairs on the rear side of the collapsed structure, was stuck for a while under the debris. Police sent her to an old age home after she was rescued.
Officers of the Cantonment police station said they were in the process of reaching the leaseholder. Residents were scared other buildings in the vicinity could meet the same fate amid incessant rain because of lack of repair.
"The buildings and the electricity wirings are old. Water is leaking from the roof in our building because of the rain and is seeping into electrical panels. We have requested our landlord to undertake repair, but he has not done the needful. If the rain continues like this, the roof may cave in, or there may be a short circuit," said Maya Gidwani, a resident of a property next to the building.
PCB officials stressed that the adjacent properties were not in any danger, but any required repair should be carried out as soon as possible.
"We have examined the buildings next to the collapsed structure and found no danger. But if residents find any part of a building in need of repair, the leaseholders should carry it out soon. Permissions are not required for minor repairs," said a senior PCB official.