Roof of landmark Connaught Place structure collapses; safety concerns raised

New Delhi: The roof of a vacant shop collapsed in Connaught Place in the wee hours on Thursday.

The incident, which took place near the iconic Jain Book Depot, raised concerns about the safety of buildings in the early 20th-century shopping hub of the capital that is counted among the top heritage structures in New Delhi.

The incident took place early on Thursday morning on the first floor of a C-Block structure above the popular book depot in the inner circle where a wall and the roof caved in, a Delhi fire officer said. There were no injuries as the structure had been lying vacant for a long time, said the officer

"No one was present inside the collapsed structure. Some walls and floors of the building have also been damaged in the collapse."

"A case under Section 336 (Act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the IPC has been registered against unknown persons. We have asked NDMC (New Delhi Municipal Council) to inspect the portion that has collapsed and have sought details about the ownership of the shop from them," said a senior police officer.

The debris was cleared to a larger extent till late evening, said an NDMC official.

The vacant shop earlier housed a beauty parlour but it was vacated last year in September, police said.

NDMC is planning to conduct an audit of the buildings in Connaught Place following the incident.

(With Agency inputs)