Once again a building in the capital Delhi buried the lives and dreams of many families under debris. On Sunday afternoon, a five-storey building including the basement of ‘Hostel Days’ PG, run for students, suddenly collapsed near Nanakpura Gurudwara in Satya Niketan area of South Delhi. After the accident, there was screaming and chaos in the entire area. Amid fears that many students may be buried under the debris, NDRF, Delhi Police, Fire Brigade, DDMA, CATS and other agencies started rescue operations on war footing. According to the latest situation, a total of nine people have been pulled out from the debris. Of these, six injured are undergoing treatment in hospitals, while three people have died. The dead included a student Yuvraj, a laborer and an unidentified person. Among the injured are four students and two labourers.
A phone call created chaos
South Campus police station received information about the building collapse at around 1:34 pm on Sunday afternoon. As soon as the information was received, police, Delhi Fire Service, CATS ambulance and other emergency teams reached the spot. Within some time, National Disaster Response Force teams also reached the spot and started searching for the people trapped under the debris. NDRF deployed around 70 rescue personnel in the operation. Two teams continued to work directly on the scene, while two other teams were kept ready for immediate deployment if required.
NDRF kept searching for life in the debris
During the rescue operation, NDRF Commanding Officer Sunil Singh was present on the spot along with officers and rescue workers, while the operation was commanded by DIG Operations Satvinder Singh Sudan. State-of-the-art life saving equipment, life indicator devices, trained sniffer dogs and special search and rescue equipment were used to locate the people buried under the debris. The help of hydraulic jack, diamond chain saw, combi cutter, plasma cutter and other equipment was taken to cut the debris. According to NDRF, after the presence of a person is detected through the life indicator device, it can take up to 15 minutes to take him out safely. The rescue teams removed the debris with utmost care and pulled out the people.
Army’s Hydra removed heavy debris
To speed up the rescue operation, army personnel also reached the spot with a big Hydra machine. The heavy debris was removed with the help of machines, but the rescue teams took utmost care so that no person buried under the debris was harmed. A continuous search was conducted at possible locations based on information received from local people, eyewitnesses, sniffer dogs and vital signs.
A total of 9 people were evacuated, 6 in hospital
According to the latest situation, six injured people who were rescued from the debris are undergoing treatment in hospitals.
injured student
Abhishek – AIIMS Trauma Center – Condition stable.
Neeraj – AIIMS Trauma Center – Condition stable.
Aditya – AIIMS Trauma Center – Condition stable.
An unidentified student — RR Hospital — condition stable.
injured laborer
Asghar Ali – AIIMS Trauma Center – Condition stable.
Aayan – Safdarjung Hospital – Condition stable.
deceased
Yuvraj – student – brought dead to AIIMS trauma center
An unidentified man — a laborer — was brought dead to AIIMS Trauma Center.
another unknown person
The building was old, work was going on in the basement
According to preliminary information, the collapsed building is said to be around 50 to 60 years old. The building had five upper floors apart from the basement and was being used as a PG for students. Locals and students claim that construction or renovation work was going on in the basement before the accident. However, the connection between the building collapse and the work going on in the basement has not been officially confirmed yet. Some students also claimed that the Municipal Corporation had declared the building unsafe about a year ago. This claim is also yet to be officially confirmed.
Fine from outside. ‘Shabby from within’ – students’ allegations
After the accident, students and local people living nearby raised questions on the security arrangements of the buildings. A student alleged that there was unauthorized construction in several buildings in the area. However, these allegations could not be independently confirmed. A local resident said that the building looked normal from outside and no one had any idea that it would suddenly collapse. Questioning the system, a student said, don’t provide facilities, but at least ensure our safety.
Second PG building of same company also in question
After the accident, fear spread among the students living in other PG buildings of ‘Hostel Days’ in the area. According to the students, many PG properties of the company are operated in the area. It came to light that the main gate of another building was closed from outside after the accident. Students raised questions on this. A student asked who would be responsible if any accident happened in the other building too? However, the company representative clarified that the students present in the other building were safe and the gate was closed from outside to control panic. It was told that the second building is a four-storey girls’ hostel. According to the students, the rent for living in PG is around Rs 13 thousand to Rs 18 thousand per month. Some students also complained about the facilities.
CM and Lieutenant Governor reached the spot and took stock
As soon as information about the accident was received, activity increased at the administrative level also. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta reached the spot and took stock of the rescue and relief operations. He said that teams of DDMA, NDRF, Delhi Fire Service, Delhi Police, MCD, CATS and Civil Defense are engaged in relief and rescue operations on war footing. As a precaution, the surrounding buildings were also evacuated. Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu also visited the spot and directed all concerned agencies to carry out rapid rescue operations with mutual coordination.
Prime Minister and Home Minister expressed grief
Expressing grief over the incident of building collapse in Satya Niketan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences to the families of the deceased and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured. Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to the Chief Minister, Delhi Police Commissioner and NDRF Director General and took information about the situation. He said that the local administration and NDRF are jointly doing relief and rescue work and better medical facilities are being provided to the injured.
Case against the owner and investigation into the cause of the accident.
The police have registered a case against the owner of the building and started investigation. According to the information revealed, the name of the owner is being told as Anand Bansal. The investigation is being done to find out what was the structural condition of the building, whether necessary permissions were taken for its maintenance and repairs, what kind of work was going on in the basement and whether the safety standards for operating the PG were being followed or not. Along with this, the security of other nearby buildings has also been brought under the ambit of investigation.
Delhi’s buildings trembled repeatedly in a year
The Satya Niketan accident has once again raised a big question on the security arrangements of old, dilapidated and under-construction buildings in the capital. In the last one year, many incidents of collapse of buildings or their parts have come to light in Delhi.
Uttam Nagar — October 10, 2025: A 32-year-old woman, Poonam, died and her five-year-old daughter was injured when a portion of a three-storey house collapsed during construction or repair.
Wazirpur – 11 April 2026: Seven-year-old child Dipanshu died and a girl was injured when the balcony of a dilapidated house collapsed.
Saidulajab, Saket — 30 May 2026: Six people died and eight were injured when a multi-storey building collapsed. Students also lost their lives in the accident.
Rohini Sector-16 — 8 July 2026: Three people died after two under-construction buildings collapsed. The rescue operation lasted for several hours.
Karol Bagh — 21 August 2026: The structure collapsed during the demolition of an old building. One worker died and three people were injured.
Satya Niketan — 6 September 2026: Five-storey PG building collapsed. Nine people were pulled from the debris, including three dead and six injured.
The question is not just about the debris, but about the system.
The Satya Niketan accident has left many serious questions before the building safety system of the capital. Are old buildings being inspected regularly? Do PG operators have structural audit of their buildings?
Who supervises during construction or renovation in the basement? If a building was declared unsafe then how were students allowed to live in it?
And the biggest question – why were security arrangements not made before the accident? The debris of Satya Niketan does not tell the story of just the collapse of a building. This is the story of the broken dreams of those families who sent their children to Delhi to study and build a future.