Structural Audit Of All Hoardings In Mumbai After Ghatkopar Billboard Collapse Kills 8

Hours after a billboard collapsed in Ghatkopar, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday ordered a structural audit of all hoardings in Mumbai. The CM said that the civic commissioner has been asked to remove all dangerous and unauthorised hoardings immediately. As of 9pm, the number of deceased stood at eight, with 64 injured and 20-30 feared trapped.

The billboard, said to be illegal, fell on a petrol pump at the Chhedanagar Junction along the Eastern Expressway, amid a dust storm and heavy rain in the afternoon. A senior civic official said a National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team has reached the spot and rescue operation is underway. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has dispatched a team of 60 personnel from Metro Line 4 Amar Mahal site to provide support.

“Machinery, including cranes for lifting the hoarding and gas cutters, has arrived at the spot,” the official said, adding that the search and rescue operation is underway.

Rs 5 LAKH FOR FAMILY OF DECEASED

Shinde, who visited the spot in the evening, said, “The accident is very unfortunate. It will be investigated and action will be taken against the culprits. Currently, the rescue operations have started at the accident site and the hoarding is being removed with the help of hydra and cranes. So far, 57 people have been evacuated safely and they are undergoing treatment at Rajawadi Hospital.”

“…Rescuing people is our priority. The government will take care of the treatment of those who are injured in the incident. Rs 5 lakh will be given to the family of those who have lost their lives. I have directed the authorities concerned to audit all such hoardings in Mumbai…,” Shinde said.

Shinde said a case of culpable homicide has been registered and action will be taken against those responsible.

Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis said, “…There will be an investigation regarding what kind of permission they had for this hoarding, whether they had this permission or not…The CM has directed that a proper audit of all the hoardings in Mumbai be done by the BMC to mitigate such incidents in future. Whoever is responsible for this kind of ignorance, strict action will be taken against them.”

Confirming the number of dead at eight, Bhushan Gagrani, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner, said, “The CM has ordered us to take steps to prevent such incidents in the future.”

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