North 24 Parganas, 19 July (H.S.) A tragic incident occurred in the Panihati municipality area of North 24 Parganas district, where a man lost his life after a portion of a dilapidated house collapsed during the early hours on Saturday morning. The deceased has been identified as Debkumar Shrimani. The incident took place in Ward No. 3 of Panihati, on MN Chattopadhyay Road.
The crumbling house is jointly owned by Debkumar and his two brothers. While the eldest brother resides elsewhere, Debkumar and his middle brother lived in the deteriorating structure along with their families. According to neighbors and the local municipal councillor, repeated requests had been made to vacate the building, but the families continued to reside there.
Around 2 a.m. on Saturday,, a section of the house collapsed and Debkumar was buried under the rubble of bricks and concrete. Local residents rushed to the spot and immediately informed Khardah Police Station. The police and rescue teams arrived and pulled Debkumar out from the debris. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
Debkumar’s sister-in-law, Bharati Shrimani, recounted the terrifying moment: “We were asleep when we suddenly heard a loud crashing noise. When we stepped outside, we saw a part of the house had collapsed. We didn’t realize at first that my brother-in-law was trapped under the debris. His son was crying out, ‘Baba, where are you?’ Locals helped pull him out from the rubble.”
She also mentioned that several real estate promoters had shown interest in the property for redevelopment. However, due to disagreements among the brothers, the house was never sold.
Local resident Debashis Mukherjee confirmed the building was unfit for habitation: “The house was very old. In fact, a portion of it had collapsed on Friday morning. The family had started looking for a new place. But that very night, around 2 a.m., another section fell, and Debkumar was trapped underneath. Though we managed to take him to the hospital, he couldn’t be saved.”
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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
