NHRC takes suo motu cognisance of Virar building collapse that killed 17

New Delhi [India], September 3 (ANI): The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) said it had taken suo motu cognisance of a media report stating that on August 27, a portion of a four-storey apartment building collapsed in the Palghar district of Maharashtra's Virar East area, killing 17 people and injuring eight more, according to an official statement released by the commission on Wednesday.
Reportedly, the building was unauthorised and constructed more than a decade back. However, the residents were paying taxes to the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC), believing that the building was authorised as per the notarised documents, the statement said.
The Commission has observed that the contents of the media report, if true, raise serious issues of violation of human rights.
Therefore, it has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Maharashtra, calling for a detailed report on the matter within two weeks, the statement added.
According to the media report, carried on August 28, a senior officer of the VVCMC has stated that the building might have collapsed due to the use of inferior-quality construction material.
The residents were sent three notices to vacate the building, but all the warnings were ignored. Reportedly, the building had around 50 flats and half a dozen shops, of which the rear side of the building, comprising around 12 flats, collapsed. (ANI)