November 17, 2025: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has stopped all redevelopment activity at Habib Mansion in Byculla after unauthorised deep excavation and backfilling led to the deaths of two labourers and left three others seriously injured. A stop-work notice was issued late on Saturday, along with a 24-hour intimation to developer Ibrahim Jusab Sopariwala and others, directing them to submit valid construction permissions or face demolition of the structure by the civic body.
The incident occurred when workers using jackhammers in a 15-foot-deep pit were suddenly buried under a collapsing wall of loose soil and stones. Civic officials said the excavation work violated several conditions listed in the Intimation of Disapproval (IOD) granted in 2023 and was carried out without even basic safety measures. They added that the developer failed to alert the fire brigade, despite the mandatory requirement to report any collapse immediately. Instead, the injured workers were transported directly to Nair Hospital by the developer’s team—an action officials described as a serious breach of emergency protocol.
Rohit Trivedi, assistant commissioner of E ward, said the ward office learned about the accident through the police and hospital authorities. “We issued the notice to the developer last evening due to the safety lapse,” he told HT. “We have asked the building proposals department to submit a report.” He added that the team should have informed the fire brigade immediately. “However, they did not do this and evacuated the site themselves and sent the injured to Nair Hospital.”
The collapse happened during piling work for the building’s foundation. Workers said it took roughly 30 minutes to pull out those buried under the soil. Two labourers—Rahul, 30, and Raju, 28—were declared dead, while three others sustained severe leg injuries. Byculla police have registered an accidental death report.
The stop-work order, issued under Section 351(1) of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, cites unlawful deep excavation and backfilling that posed a direct danger to human life, violating Sections 337, 342 and 347. Invoking Section 354A, the BMC has demanded immediate cessation of work and submission of all approval documents within 24 hours, warning that failure to comply will result in demolition at the developer’s cost. Police have been instructed to clear the site of any personnel found continuing work.
Source: Hindustan Times
