00:00This is Chauri Bazaar area, where two people have died after a building collapsed.
00:05The building crashed in Delhi's Chauri Bazaar area.
00:07Two people have lost their life.
00:09One person was taken out and is injured, though.
00:12But six to seven people, at least, are feared trapped.
00:14This is not looking good, ladies and gentlemen.
00:16I want to tell you about Chauri Bazaar area.
00:18This is city's one of oldest and busiest markets, wholesale or retail.
00:24And it is the Diwali festival.
00:26Otherwise, if you would go to Chauri Bazaar or Chandni Chauk area right now,
00:29there wouldn't even be space to really be walking.
00:31At a time like this, for a building to collapse, it's not looking good.
00:35There are people fear trapped.
00:36I'm going to tell you in more details about what kind of a building was this.
00:40Was this, again, a commercial establishment or a residential location?
00:44But Chauri Bazaar is the go-to market when it comes to the festivities, Diwali's,
00:50whether it's for wholesale or retailers as well.
00:53It's known as India's largest wholesale market.
00:56So you can imagine, at this point, this would be bustling with activity and people.
01:01But rescue personnel are on the ground.
01:03One person was taken out and has survived.
01:05He's injured, though.
01:07But two people have been confirmed dead.
01:09What happened?
01:10How did a building suddenly collapse?
01:12Was there no information about it earlier?
01:14We'll try and get more clarity on this.
01:16This is a reminder of what happened in Shanti Nikitan as well.
01:19Remember, in areas like Chauri Bazaar, these are old buildings, narrow by-lanes.
01:25And some of these buildings are historical.
01:28Could be more than 100 years.
01:31But there are also buildings that have come up, whether legally or illegally,
01:36in areas which cannot really even have the capacity of areas like this.
01:40But at a time, especially like this, when there is a dense footfall,
01:44which is filled with shoppers, whether labourers, rickshaws, transport vehicles,
01:48in these narrow lanes of Chauri Bazaar,
01:51you can be sure that at this time of the day or any time right now,
01:55would be constantly packed.
01:56But we'll try and get more clarity about whether this was the marketplace area of Chauri Bazaar
02:00or a residential locality.
02:03But clearly, this is one of the city's old Delhi areas.
02:07One of the most prominent places.
02:10Deaths are feared.
02:11Anshul Singh is joining me for the latest on that.
02:14Anshul, do you hear what part of Chauri Bazaar is there?
02:18Because we go there for wedding shopping, festive shopping.
02:23It's busy all time of the year.
02:25What part of it?
02:26I believe you're on the location, Anshul.
02:27Please go ahead.
02:28Please go ahead.
02:32Yes, I'm at the location and this is Gali Satara of the Chauri Bazaar
02:35and this is the length of the area in which this entire incident has happened.
02:41It is being said that the exact location where the building has collapsed
02:44is just on the left-hand side
02:46and that street is just approximately 4 feet in length.
02:51So, it is impossible for any sort of heavy machinery
02:54to get over here and then carry forward with the rescue operations.
02:58The rescue operations are underway.
03:00NDRF teams have also been called
03:02but localized operations have still not started.
03:05The NDRF is trying to remove the debris by the hand itself
03:09and hence it is becoming very, very long and cumbersome process
03:14for the NDRF teams to go ahead and carry out with this entire rescue operations.
03:18You can see in these visuals that it is almost impossible
03:22for any heavy machinery to reach over here and somewhere or the other give pace to the rescue operations.
03:27Now, officially what Delhi police sources have told us at this point in time
03:30that there could be 6 to 7 people who are fear trapped inside beneath the debris.
03:37Their exact location as to where they are stuck has still not been cleared.
03:42It is still not clear where are the exact locations where these people are stuck
03:46because remember this entire operation is being done by hand
03:50and hence the exact intelligence and exact inputs about the location of these people
03:55should be ascertained by the police and the rescuers
04:00before they can go ahead and carry out with the entire operation
04:03and that is something that is being done.
04:06Two people have lost their life.
04:07One person has been taken out, injured and is admitted in a hospital.
04:11Six to seven others are fear trapped.
04:14Their exact location is still being ascertained.
04:16So, definitely a big, big challenge for the Delhi police at this point in time
04:21and the officers who are trying to go ahead and carry on with this entire rescue operations
04:26because this rescue operation would entirely be done through hand.
04:29Can you help me understand?
04:30So, was this building, was it a marketplace area, was it a residential locality
04:36because you mentioned Satara.
04:37From my knowledge, Satara Gali is about hardware, it's about industrial equipment largely
04:43in that area of Chawdi Bazaar.
04:45So, what are we expecting from what kind of a place was this?
04:52So, yes, the approach road that leads towards this entire location is in Chawdi Bazaar.
04:57As you rightly mentioned, the Gali Satara as it is famously being called
05:01and right behind that approach road is the location, is this residential area where this incident has happened.
05:08Now, this building was under construction for the past several months.
05:11In fact, a few locals have also gone ahead and alleged that the entire construction was being done in an
05:16illegal manner
05:17and for that, they have been trying to raise their voices as well.
05:20But, yes, there was no action that was taken at that point in time
05:23and eventually, while the building was being constructed, the entire building has come down.
05:29Seven people, six to seven people are still fear trap.
05:32It remains to be seen how quickly, first, the rescuers can identify the exact spots where people could have been
05:38stuck.
05:40Secondly, how quickly can they ensure, because the entire process will be done by hands, will be done through hands.
05:46So, how quickly can they ensure that the debris is removed at the earliest so that people could be taken
05:51out safely
05:51because the race is now against time.
05:54The more and more time that is being consumed to locate their locations,
05:58the chances of them being safe is definitely going down.
06:02Anshul, because you've been reporting so extensively in and around Delhi,
06:06you were at Shantyaniketan, Satyaniketan also, I believe, I remember,
06:10and now you're in Chowri Bazaar.
06:12Places like Chowri Bazaar again reminds us of these incidents waiting to happen.
06:17I see wires all over in Chandani Chowk, even though a lot of development work is being done,
06:21this is something that really needs to get hold of because these buildings are possibly historical
06:26and then there are more encroachments.
06:33There is a lot of encroachment in this entire area and that is something that is just nothing new in
06:40this.
06:40But if you could see this entire area as well, yet again, similar story, we have been reporting on such
06:46locations,
06:47we have been reporting not only from here in Chowri Bazaar, but in other locations where there are such ghettos
06:52that have been made in which there is absolutely no place for even humans to walk freely.
06:57And in such locations, there are such buildings that have been constructed all in an absolutely, absolutely illegal manner.
07:03No one is there to bat an eye.
07:05Now, since this incident has happened, yet again, we can expect the same media bites to come to the fore.
07:10An investigation will be ordered.
07:12Some action would be taken against some low-level officers of the municipal corporation of Delhi.
07:17They would be suspended.
07:19All for an eye wash.
07:20But the real implementation on the ground, anything that has changed, absolutely not.
07:25There is nothing that has changed even after the Satya Nakedan incident,
07:28even after there are other instances of fire that has happened in which yet again questions regarding the authenticity of
07:37the fire certificate comes up.
07:39So, day in and day out, such instances happen.
07:41But rarely we see any sort of a change that happens.
07:44Even as what you are showing, Aamshul, I again see these are exposed wires.
07:49Look, there is not even space between two buildings that are facing each other.
07:54These are narrow by-lanes.
07:55I request you and the video journalist also to be able to show us more towards what part that the
08:01building where it has collapsed.
08:03These are the visuals.
08:04Aamshul, stay on with me.
08:05This is the latest visual, a tour pie visual that we are bringing to you.
08:09The building that collapsed between two other adjacent buildings.
08:12This is terrible, remember.
08:14We don't know who are trapped right now.
08:16Could be anyone from laborers to owners to families that were there.
08:20We're saying this is largely, this gully sitar is largely a hardware, industrial equipment and tools that are sold here
08:26in this part of Chauri Bazaar.
08:28I come back to you, Aamshul.
08:29We are looking at different angles and the visuals that we've accessed about the building collapse and the rescue personnel.
08:35What is that road that is heading toward that building?
08:39Can you see from where you're standing?
08:41Has that area been barricaded?
08:42Are there people already?
08:43Many shoppers must be there in this area right now ahead of Diwali.
08:50Well, yes, that became one of the major issues.
08:52Why it took a lot of time for the rescuers to actually reach over here along with their vehicles because
08:56the entire road was absolutely blocked.
08:59Now barricading has been done and the area has been converted into a green corridor and people have been asked
09:05to stay inside.
09:05But over here, if I could just show you again, right on my left is the location where the building
09:11has collapsed.
09:11But if you could see the difference or the length of this entire street, you will understand that how difficult
09:18it is going to be for the rescuers to bring any sort of heavy machineries to this location.
09:25Because there is absolutely very little movement of humans that can happen, let alone about the machinery as well.
09:32So the DM of this area has also now arrived over here to actually look at the scene as to
09:38what kind of rescue operations are underway.
09:40But yes, it is becoming very, very difficult for the police and the authorities to carry out this entire rescue
09:45operation.
09:46Because the vehicles are parked at a distance of approximately 200 meters away from the spot where the incident has
09:53happened.
09:54And from there, everything that is happening, each and every machinery, rope or anything that is required, they have to
09:59travel this distance of approximately 200 meters and then come back with those machineries and then carry on with the
10:05rescue operation.
10:06So yes, there are several challenges that are being faced and that is the reason why it is expected that
10:11it could take a long haul for the authorities to initially identify the spots at which these people are stuck
10:16and then go ahead and carry out with the rescue operations as they will have to dug through their hands,
10:22through the mud and debris that has collected over there.
10:24Thank you very much.
