Satya Niketan building collapse: 1 dead, 4 rescued from ‘Hostel Daze’; Amit Shah leaves Goa for Delhi

Delhi Satya Niketan building collapse: One person has been declared dead, while rescue teams have so far pulled four people from the debris and shifted them to AIIMS Trauma Centre, where they were reported to be in critical condition. The event to inaugurate the BJP office in Goa was curtailed after Union Home Minister Amit Shah left the venue upon learning about the tragic incident in the national capital. The building that collapsed was a five-storey boys’ paying guest accommodation called “Hostel Daze”. A local said the hostel was usually fully occupied. The narrow and “congested lanes” had also delayed the arrival of rescue vehicles at the site, the person added, according to PTI. "The hostel was always full. So many people could still be trapped under the debris. The lanes are very congested, so it was difficult for rescue vehicle to arrive at the scene faster," the local stated. Students who were inside their rooms became trapped beneath the debris, shared another eyewitness while recounting the horror. Several students sustained serious injuries, the eyewitness further said. “The building that collapsed is called 'Hostel Daze'. Right next to it is another building that collapsed. 'Hostel Daze' is a dedicated boys' PG; it was a five-story building. The adjacent building also collapsed... All the students who were inside their rooms got trapped under the rubble,” the eyewitness told ANI. “We will only know the exact number of trapped students by checking the registration records. The fire brigade and rescue teams have been at work for about 15-20 minutes—ever since the collapse—doing their absolute best to pull people out. Many students have suffered severe injuries. Rescuers are pulling them out with great difficulty,” he said. Witnesses at the site estimated that over 15 people could be trapped beneath the debris, although there was no official confirmation of the figure. Residents and eyewitnesses said they joined the rescue operation immediately, clearing rubble with their hands and whatever tools were available to look for people trapped underneath. Another eyewitness said the situation could have been worse if the collapse had occurred on a working day, as many students living in the surrounding area had gone back home. "Very few were here," he said. Construction activity was underway in the basement when the building collapsed near Satya Niketan in southwest Delhi at around 1.30 pm, according to PTI citing police sources. Police said a PCR call reporting the collapse near Nanakpura Gurdwara was received at the South Campus police station at 1.34 pm. Officials said eight fire tenders, along with several rescue teams from different departments, were immediately deployed to the site. The incident took place in an area close to Delhi University's South Campus, which is lined with several buildings primarily operating as student paying guest accommodations, hostels and eateries. Police personnel, fire services, CAT Ambulance teams and other emergency responders have been deployed at the site. An NDRF team has also arrived, with rescue and relief efforts continuing, a police officer said. Delhi Mayor Pravesh Wahi arrived at the site of building collapse in Satya Niketan. “I received information about the incident an hour ago. By then, the ambulance had already arrived. We want the children to be saved. There are many shortcomings in the system, and I accept that. But right now, I request everyone to let the rescue operation continue first,” Wahi said. BJP MLA Anil Sharma also reached the spot and shared that people are still trapped. "We are even getting calls from those who are trapped inside. Teams are continuously in touch with those who are trapped inside; we pray to god that all people are safe," he said. Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on accuracy and compelling storytelling for readers. <br><br> With a total of six years of experience in journalism, he has previously worked with Vaco Binary Semantics for Google, taking on the role of news curation lead, and reported from the field on health, education, and agriculture stories for 101reporters and News9. He has also served as a content editor for entertainment and news media organisations. <br><br> Garvit holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and mass communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and Gurugram University, respectively. During college days, he joined India’s only non-profit student journalism network, where he anchored daily news updates and produced his own weekly show called ‘Data Fix’. <br><br> He was selected for the YES Foundation Media for Social Change Fellowship in Delhi, the Talking Data to the Fourth Pillar residential workshop, and the VOICE Fellowship in Pune. <br><br> He holds certificates in COVID-19-verification reporting, data journalism, food &amp; agriculture, tech policy, media literacy and countering misinformation, and tackling election disinformation courses from Thomson Foundation, IndiaSpend, The Dialogue, US Mission in India, and AFP. <br><br> He can be reached on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/garvit-bhirani">LinkedIn</a> or on <a href="https://x.com/GarvitBhirani">@garvitbhirani</a> on X Oops! Looks like you have exceeded the limit to bookmark the image. Remove some to bookmark this image.