Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Indian police detain five over deadly flyover collapse

INDIAN police said on Friday (April 1) they have detained five staff at the company building a flyover that collapsed, killing at least 25 people, as hopes of finding more survivors faded.

Emergency workers using specialist equipment have pulled nearly 100 survivors from under the huge concrete slabs and metal girders that fell onto a busy street in Kolkata on Thursday (March 31), crushing cars and pedestrians.


On Friday they said there was little hope of finding any more survivors under the rubble of the flyover, which had been under construction since 2009.

“The rescue operation will not stop until all the blocks of concrete and iron girders have been cleared,” said deputy police commissioner Akhilesh Chaturvedi as he announced the toll had risen to 25.

“Nearly 300 rescuers, including army and disaster management personnel, are working around the clock to clear the rubble.”

Police said they had detained five employees of IVRCL, the contractor behind the construction project, which has denied responsibility for the disaster in the capital of West Bengal state.

“Five people of the Hyderabad company have been detained for questioning,” said Kolkata deputy commissioner of police Akhilesh Chaturvedi, referring to the contractor.

He gave no further details, but police earlier said they had registered a case of culpable homicide against the firm, whose offices in Kolkata have been sealed by investigators.

Derek O’Brien, a state lawmaker, said the company had been blacklisted in other states and had a “bad reputation”.

“The law will take its own course, noone will be spared,” he told reporters in Kolkata.

Construction of the two-kilometre-long flyover began in 2009 and was supposed to be completed within 18 months, but has suffered a series of hold-ups.

A company representative infuriated victims on Thursday when he described the disaster as an “act of God”.

On Friday the company appeared again to deny any responsibility for the disaster, and said the construction had been repeatedly delayed because it had been unable to get the necessary approvals.

“Prima facie we feel it is a mere accident for which we also feel very, very sorry,” IVRCL’s legal chief Seetha Peddapathi told reporters in Hyderabad where the company is based.

“IVRCL and its staff will cooperate with the investigations and provide maximum support.”

Survivors being treated at a nearby hospital described how tonnes of metal and concrete came crashing down onto the busy street without warning.

“The flyover collapsed in front of me. When I tried to escape, I was hit,” said housewife Sabita Devi.

Hospital manager Sitaram Agarwal said many people were being treated for head and leg injuries sustained in the disaster.

Authorities initially struggled to get cranes and other large machinery through the narrow streets of Burrabazar, one of the oldest and most congested parts of the city.

The disaster is the latest in a string of deadly construction accidents in India, where enforcement of safety rules is weak and substandard materials are often used.

The Times of India said it was “another brutal reminder of (the) shoddy quality of construction and gross neglect of public safety in our cities”, calling for a thorough inquiry to determine what went wrong.

The disaster comes at a sensitive time for West Bengal’s Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, whose Trinamool Congress party is seeking re-election.

Banerjee has blamed the previous state government under which the flyover project was started, but has herself faced criticism over the beleaguered construction project.

Voting in the West Bengal elections begins on Monday (April 4) and will be held in five phases lasting a month.

More For You

Starmer seeks strong protections for military base in Chagos deal

Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a meeting with business leaders on January 28, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Benjamin Cremel - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Starmer seeks strong protections for military base in Chagos deal

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer and his Mauritian counterpart Navin Ramgoolam on Friday (31) spoke directly for the first time about the Chagos Islands deal, Starmer's office said.

Britain and its former colony reached a deal last October to hand back Chagos -- which it kept control of after Mauritius gained independence in the 1960s -- provided a UK-US military base remains on the largest island, Diego Garcia.

Keep ReadingShow less
Tommy Robinson supporters and anti-racism groups to face off

Supporters of Tommy Robinson carry a banner in Parliament Square. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)

Tommy Robinson supporters and anti-racism groups to face off

PROTESTERS supporting far-right activist Tommy Robinson and anti-racism campaigners will gather in central London on Saturday (1), with police deploying extra officers to maintain order and prevent clashes.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is serving an 18-month prison sentence for breaching a High Court injunction. His supporters, rallying under the banners "Stop the Isolation" and "Unite the Kingdom," will assemble near Waterloo Station from midday before marching to Whitehall.

Keep ReadingShow less
What’s next for Rishi Sunak? From Downing Street to a new mission

Rishi Sunak with Akshata Murty

What’s next for Rishi Sunak? From Downing Street to a new mission

NOW that he has been prime minister, what next for Rishi Sunak?

His wife, Akshata Murty, dropped a hint when she was interviewed along with her mother, Sudha Murty, for the long-running Relative Values slot in the Sunday Times.

Keep ReadingShow less
India slashes income taxes in bid to boost economy

Nirmala Sitharaman holds up a folder with the government of India's logo as she leaves her office to present the annual budget in the parliament, in New Delhi. REUTERS/Altaf Hussain

India slashes income taxes in bid to boost economy

INDIA's finance minister unveiled broad income tax cuts on Saturday (1) as prime minister Narendra Modi's government looks to bolster consumption and perk up a slowing economy.

The world's most populous country is forecast to expand at its slowest pace since the Covid pandemic in the current fiscal year, after growing at more than eight per cent last year.

Keep ReadingShow less
Washington-air-crash-Getty

The collision is the deadliest aviation disaster in the US since 2001. (Photo: Getty Images)

Two Indian-American passengers among victims of Washington air crash

TWO Indian-Americans were among the 67 people killed in a mid-air collision between a US Army helicopter and a jetliner at Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington, media reports said.

Vikesh Patel, a GE Aerospace engineer, and Asra Hussain Raza, a Washington DC-based consultant, were on board American Airlines flight 5342 when it collided with the Army helicopter while approaching the airport on Wednesday night.

Keep ReadingShow less