Recent rise in deaths, property damage due to building collapses: Union Home Secretary
Union Home Secretary flagged a recent increase in deaths and property damage caused by building collapses across India, indicating an escalating urban structural safety problem
Recent incidents illustrate the pattern: a portion of a Corporation-owned building collapsed in Kozhikode, Kerala (four killed); a three-storey structure collapsed in Kota, Rajasthan; scaffolding collapse at a Noida construction site (two killed); a ceiling collapse in Kolkata's Park Circus
The Home Secretary's remarks come in the context of a broader recognition that building collapses are a man-made disaster category under India's Disaster Management Act — distinct from natural disasters
The rising toll reflects a convergence of factors: ageing housing stock, illegal construction and floor additions, inadequate building inspections, weak enforcement of building byelaws by urban local bodies, and corruption in the construction sector
513 buildings in Navi Mumbai alone were identified as unsafe, with audit deadlines set
Disaster Management Framework in India: NDMA and the Three-Tier Structure
Building collapses are classified as man-made disasters under India's Disaster Management Act (2005), bringing them within the purview of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and its three-tier governance structure. The Home Secretary's statement positions the issue within this framework.
Key Details
- Disaster Management Act, 2005: Established NDMA, SDMAs, and DDMAs; mandates disaster preparedness, mitigation, and response plans
- NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority): Apex body, headed by the Prime Minister; issues guidelines for disaster prevention and management
- SDMA (State Disaster Management Authority): Headed by the Chief Minister; state-level implementation
- DDMA (District Disaster Management Authority): District Collector heads the body; first-responder coordination
- Man-made disasters under the framework: include building collapses, industrial accidents, urban fires, chemical leaks
- Building collapses — unlike floods or earthquakes — are largely preventable, which shifts responsibility toward governance and enforcement
The Union Home Secretary's intervention signals that the Centre views the rising frequency of building collapses as a governance failure requiring coordinated action across NDMA, SDMAs, and urban local bodies — not merely isolated accidents.
Urban Governance and Building Bye-Laws in India
Building regulation in India is a state and local subject. Urban local bodies (ULBs) — municipalities and municipal corporations — are the primary enforcement agencies for building byelaws, construction permits, and occupancy certificates. The frequent collapse of illegal or unsafe structures reflects chronic weakness in this last-mile governance function.
Key Details
- 74th Constitutional Amendment (1992): Devolved urban planning and regulation functions to ULBs through Schedule 12 (18 functions including regulation of land use, building construction, and public health)
- Town and Country Planning Organisation (TCPO): Under Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs; issues Model Building Bye-Laws to guide states and ULBs
- Model Building Bye-Laws 2016: Updated national guidelines covering structural stability, fire safety, rainwater harvesting, FAR (Floor Area Ratio), and setback requirements
- National Building Code of India (NBC): Published by Bureau of Indian Standards; comprehensive technical standard for construction safety
- Key enforcement gaps: inadequate building inspectors, corruption in issuing occupancy certificates, lack of periodic structural audits for ageing buildings, tolerance of floor additions beyond permitted limits
The Home Secretary's remarks implicitly call attention to the gap between national standards (Model Bye-Laws, NBC) and ground-level enforcement — a gap that falls squarely within the jurisdiction of ULBs and the 74th Amendment framework.
Urban Planning Failures and Illegal Construction
India's rapid and often unplanned urbanisation has produced a large stock of structurally vulnerable buildings — built without permits, with substandard materials, in violation of FAR norms, or without structural audits. This is the root cause of the building collapse epidemic.
Key Details
- India's urban population: ~500 million (2023); projected to reach ~600 million by 2030; urban population growth outpaces regulatory capacity
- RERA (Real Estate Regulation and Development Act, 2016): Regulates the real estate sector; mandates structural warranties by builders; but primarily applies to new residential projects, not the existing building stock
- AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation): Focuses on basic infrastructure in cities; structural safety of buildings is not a primary focus
- PM Awas Yojana (Urban): Aims to provide housing to the urban poor; quality enforcement varies
- The OCCRP found corruption "confirmed" in at least one major Indian building collapse investigation — indicating systemic rather than isolated failure
The Home Secretary's statement is a governance alert — the physical stock of India's cities contains an invisible time bomb of non-compliant and ageing structures, and without stronger ULB enforcement backed by state government support, the death toll will continue to rise.
- Recent collapses: Kozhikode (4 killed), Kota (2 killed, several trapped), Noida scaffolding (2 killed), Kolkata Park Circus (1 killed)
- 513 buildings in Navi Mumbai identified unsafe; building audit deadlines set
- Disaster Management Act (2005): establishes NDMA (PM as head), SDMA (CM as head), DDMA (District Collector as head)
- 74th Constitutional Amendment: devolved urban planning and building regulation to ULBs (Schedule 12)
- Model Building Bye-Laws 2016: national template for state/ULB building regulations
- National Building Code (NBC): Bureau of Indian Standards technical standard for construction safety
- India's urban population: ~500 million (2023), growing ~2.3% per year
- RERA (2016): builder structural warranty — but covers new projects only