Five persons were killed and two others suffered serious injuries after a dilapidated ground-plus-two-storey building collapsed on Sunday in Amravati city of Maharashtra, around 150 kms from here, a senior police official said.


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The incident occurred around 2 pm, the official said. The Maharashtra government announced Rs 5 lakh financial aid to the families of each deceased.
"The building located in Prabhat Chowk area of the city collapsed, killing five persons and injuring two others," Amravati Police Commissioner Dr Arti Singh said.


On being alerted, police personnel and an Emergency Response team rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation, she said. Most of the tenements in the building were vacant as its residents had already shifted. There were five shops on the ground floor, and some interior work was going on in one of the units selling bags, another official said.


People trapped under the debris were rescued and rushed to the hospital, where five of them were declared dead, he said. The rescue work is still on, District Collector Pavneet Kaur said, adding that the incident will be investigated and strict action will be taken against those responsible.


A civic official said the Amravati Municipal Corporation (AMC) had issued a notice for the demolition of the building in July this year as it had become old and dilapidated.


Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed grief over the incident and announced on Twitter that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has decided to provide a financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the families of each deceased from the CM Relief Fund. The medical expenses of the injured persons would be borne by the state government, he added.


The divisional commissioner has been instructed to conduct an inquiry into the incident, Fadnavis tweeted.