Kolkata warehouse collapse: Engineer, supervisor arrested; owner among 4 detained

Kolkata Police have arrested a structural engineer and a site supervisor after the Taratala warehouse collapse that killed five workers. The SIT probe will examine the design, materials, construction process and project approvals.

In Short

• A three-storey warehouse under construction collapsed near Brace Bridge
• Five workers died, while about 20 were rescued and hospitalised
• Police shifted the case to the Detective Department-led special team

The probe into Kolkata's deadly Taratala warehouse collapse gathered pace on Thursday with the arrest of the project's structural engineer and site supervisor, while four others, including the warehouse owner, were detained for questioning over possible construction and design failures that left five workers dead.

Structural engineer Kamal Samanta and construction supervisor Syed Md Gulzar were arrested in connection with the collapse that killed five workers and left several others injured. Police also detained warehouse owner Sambhunath Behra and labour contractors Md Ataul and Subhas Sarkar for questioning. Details of another detained person were not immediately available.

The action came as Kolkata Police constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the disaster, which brought down a three-storey warehouse under construction on Transport Depot Road near Brace Bridge on Wednesday afternoon.

According to an order issued by the Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime), the case has been transferred from Taratala Police Station to the Detective Department. Police said the probe will examine every aspect of the project, including the structural design, quality of materials used, execution of construction work and the approval process through which the project received clearance.

DESIGN, MATERIALS UNDER SCANNER

The arrests come amid growing indications that investigators suspect serious lapses in the planning and execution of the project. Officials said the lease holder, owners of the construction company and officials involved in sanctioning the building plan are also under the scanner.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who inspected the site after the collapse, alleged that the structure failed because of a faulty design rather than rain or weak soil conditions.

"What I saw convinced me that the collapse did not take place on account of the rains or possible soft soil on which the construction was taking place. It was because of a faulty structural design in which the iron beams weren't able to take the load of concrete and crumbled to the ground," he said.

Civil engineers at the site echoed similar concerns, pointing to possible deficiencies in the load-bearing capacity of the steel framework and the apparent absence of adequate support braces required during RCC casting.

A fire services official also alleged that substandard construction materials may have been used.

5 DEAD, MANY INJURED

The roof and supporting structure of the warehouse caved in around noon while construction work was underway, burying workers under tonnes of concrete and twisted steel.

Five workers were killed in the collapse, while around 20 others were rescued and rushed to SSKM Hospital. Three of the injured were reported to be in critical condition.

The warehouse is a private leasehold property under the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port.

The rescue operation continued for hours with personnel from Kolkata Police, Fire and Emergency Services, Civil Defence, disaster management teams, the NDRF and the Army working together to reach trapped workers.

Heavy cranes, gas cutters, drones and sniffer dogs were deployed as rescuers cut through the debris in search of survivors.

CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS HALTED

The tragedy has triggered a wider review of ongoing construction projects in the city. CM Adhikari announced that all under-construction projects approved during the previous Trinamool regime within Kolkata Municipal Corporation limits would remain suspended until July 31 pending a structural audit.

The audit will be conducted by a multi-agency team comprising officials from the Public Works Department, Fire Services, Civil Defence, Kolkata Police and the KMC under the supervision of the chief secretary.

The chief minister said projects that clear the audit will be allowed to resume work from August 1, while similar inspections will subsequently be extended to Howrah and Bidhannagar.

- Ends