Hyderabad: Busy attending a series of weddings, top officials of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) were too busy on Friday to deal with a railing collapse at the Swapnalok complex on Sarojini Devi Road. A similar railing collapse in December 2016 at the Chandralok complex had claimed a life.
The railing damage happened on the fifth floor of the Swapnalok complex; the similar incident at the Chandralok complex had happened on the sixth floor.
Friday’s incident took place in the ear-ly hours, so no one was injured, unlike in the earlier incident, which proved fatal for security guard A. Durgaiah (40).
Railings, projections and parapets on the commercial complex and its residential portions are in precarious condition and likely to collapse at any moment, a danger to both inmates and passersby. A portion of the railing was still hanging throughout Friday.
GHMC authorities, however, were too busy to deal with the hazard.
GHMC chief blames rains for collapse
Commissioner D.S. Lokesh, zonal commissioner B Srinivas Reddy and other officials were blissfully unaware of the collapse. They have apparently decided to check the structural stability on Saturday.
The Swapnalok complex has cracks on all floors. The building is dangerously weak and has several offices including travel agencies, insurance agencies, garment and shoe shops, eateries, labs and data entry companies.
Lakhs pass by on their way to Patny junction. Thus even a minor collapse would be major trouble. Deccan Chronicle informed zonal commissioner Srinivas Reddy but he said it was too late to send anyone over, and that someone would be deputed on Saturday.
Lokesh Kumar claimed he was unware and said he would look into it. He said that the structure became dangerously weak due to incessant rainfall. The corporation would inspect the site and take further action.
