Rescue workers at the collapsed eleven-storey building near suburban Porur in Chennai on Sunday
Ten people have died and nearly 50 are still feared trapped under the debris of an 11-storey under-construction building that collapsed near Chennai on Saturday.
(See Pics) Five from the construction company, which had taken up the housing project, have been arrested.
21 people have been rescued so far and the injured are undergoing medical treatment. Rescue operations are on in full swing with multiple agencies, including 10 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), engaged in the exercise. Gas cutters, iron rods and shovels are being used to reach those trapped in the rubble.
"Initial priority is to rescue the identified people... Clearing debris is a huge challenge... Will take two or three days," SP Selvan, Deputy Inspector General of NDRF, told NDTV.
The incident occurred around 6 pm last evening when the structure collapsed at Moulivakkam, nearly 20 kilometres from Chennai. It was raining heavily at the time.
Most of the people who were trapped under the debris are reportedly construction workers from Andhra Pradesh and southern Tamil Nadu.
One of the builders said the structure collapsed possibly due to the impact of lightning.
"Usually, once the construction gets over we install the equipment to prevent the building from a thunder strike. It was nearing completion," the Press Trust of India quoted Balaguru.
The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority officials said a formal report would be submitted today to the government, which would study if there were any "irregularities" or "illegalities" in granting plan permission for the residential building.
Expressing grief over the incident, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa said, "Police have been ordered to take action against those who are responsible for the incident."
The state government has also announced a compensation of Rs two lakh for families of those who died and Rs 50,000 for the injured.