543 demolitions in 17 days as MCD launches massive crackdown after Satya Niketan collapse

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi demolished 543 properties and sealed another 178 in just 17 days following the deadly Satya Niketan PG building collapse, telling the Delhi High Court that it had dramatically stepped up enforcement against unauthorised construction across the Capital. Between September 6 and 23, the civic body also issued 354 show-cause notices for unauthorised construction, served 205 sealing notices and passed 98 demolition orders.

The figures were disclosed in a compliance affidavit filed on September 24 by MCD Executive Engineer (Building) Headquarters Ajay Kumar Jain. The affidavit followed the High Court’s September 7 directions asking the civic body to examine the sanction and permission status of the collapsed building, identify possible lapses and inspect PG accommodations under its jurisdiction.

Collapsed building had no sanctioned plan

The MCD told the court that Property No. 14 in Satya Niketan, which collapsed on September 6 and killed seven people, had no building plan sanctioned by the civic body. According to the affidavit, its ground, first and second floors and part of the third floor were constructed between 1970 and 1980, while a basement and the remaining portion of the third floor were added in 1997-98.

The structure was load-bearing rather than an RCC-framed building and had brick walls around 4.5 inches thick. Shops were operating on the ground floor and a PG on the upper floors, with the civic body saying PG use had continued since 2007 on payment of applicable conversion charges. The MCD said the precise cause of the collapse had not yet been established.

2,453 PG buildings surveyed

The scale of the subsequent survey has also exposed wider concerns over Delhi’s PG infrastructure. Across its 12 zones, the MCD identified 2,453 PG buildings comprising 32,247 rooms and accommodating an estimated 50,529 people, but sanctioned building plans could be traced or verified from available records for only 730 of these properties.

Of the buildings inspected, 2,342 were found visibly safe, while 91 required minor repairs and 30 needed major repairs. Four were classified as dangerous, while eight load-bearing structures and 77 framed buildings were identified for closer monitoring because of potential vulnerability.

In Satya Niketan alone, the corporation inspected around 300 properties and found PG accommodation operating from 101 of them. Three properties were declared dangerous, while another 10 were categorised as vulnerable and requiring major repairs.

Five MCD officials suspended

The civic body also informed the court that five officials in the supervisory chain were suspended on September 7, a day after the collapse. Those suspended included South Zone Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kumar, Superintending Engineer Ranvir Singh, Executive Engineer Lalit Kumar, Assistant Engineer Sunil Chauhan and Junior Engineer Ashish Kumar.

The Delhi government has separately ordered a magisterial inquiry into the tragedy. The inquiry is expected to examine permissions for the collapsed structure, possible violations of building regulations and whether any civic officials failed to discharge their responsibilities.

Delhi Police has meanwhile told the High Court that the six people arrested in connection with the collapse allegedly failed to ensure adequate safety precautions during repair and structural modification work. Investigators said no qualified structural engineer or architect had been consulted before the work was undertaken, allegations that will be tested during the criminal proceedings.

Crackdown spreads across Delhi

The Satya Niketan tragedy has triggered a broader examination of building safety in the Capital. The MCD told the court that it had surveyed around 3.99 lakh properties across 670 colonies and 178 wards over the preceding three months and detected more than 21,000 instances of commercial activity in residential areas.

Separately, the Delhi Development Authority has ordered mandatory structural safety audits of high-rise buildings sanctioned before March 21, 2001. The requirement covers buildings of 15 metres or more and also extends to shorter, high-footfall structures such as group housing complexes, hospitals, educational institutions and other institutional buildings. Owners have been given three months to complete the audits and will have to undertake corrective or retrofitting measures where required.

The measures mark one of Delhi’s most extensive building-safety drives in recent years, with the Satya Niketan collapse shifting scrutiny beyond the single property to unauthorised construction, ageing structures and the conditions in which thousands of students live in PG accommodation across the Capital.