Residents of Parivar Cooperative Housing Society in Pratiksha Nagar, Sion, had a narrow escape on Tuesday evening after a section of excavated soil from a neighbouring redevelopment project by Raymond Realty collapsed, causing ground subsidence and cracks around the society’s foundation. No injuries were reported in the incident.
According to residents, the soil collapse occurred at the adjoining construction site in Wadala East, resulting in visible cracks in the society’s compound and the ground surrounding the building. Concerned about the structural safety of the premises, residents alerted authorities.
Officials from the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA), Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), MHADA’s contractor BG Shirke, and Raymond Realty inspected the site on Wednesday to assess the situation.
“Prima facie there is no damage to our building. However, the land surrounding the building’s foundation has developed cracks,” said Sunil Dudhale, secretary of Parivar Cooperative Housing Society, which comprises 140 flats.
“The intensity of the landslide was so forceful that the strong iron shed and cement concrete platform of “Ankush Mitra Mandal” located outside the wall compound of the small garden at the back of our society has completely collapsed and fallen down. Also, it was noticed that the wall compound at the back of our society has cracked and the ground has cracked under the D-wing of the society,” added Dudhale.
A MHADA official alleged that the incident resulted from negligence on the part of the SRA contractor, claiming the issue had been flagged earlier. “We had earlier reported to the SRA regarding subsidence of land near the boundary due to the gap between sheet piles. No action was taken by them,” the official said, adding that this was the second such incident at the site.
However, Raymond Realty denied the allegation, while SRA Executive Engineer Dinesh Mahajan said the authority had not received any prior warning from MHADA.
Calling it a “mudslide” rather than a landslide, a Raymond Realty spokesperson said, “It was just a mudslide due to heavy monsoons. The mudslide happened in a minor section which accounts for less than 10% of the excavated site.”
Mahajan explained that the incident followed the collapse of shore piles, which are temporary retaining structures used to stabilise excavation sites and prevent soil movement during construction.
Following the joint inspection, officials confirmed that land subsidence had occurred at the construction site and that cracks had appeared in the boundary wall adjoining nearby MHADA societies. As an immediate precautionary measure, the developer initiated backfilling of the affected area, with nearly 75% of the work completed by Wednesday evening.
Responding to concerns about the neighbouring society, Raymond Realty stated that only “minor rectification” was required in the parking area outside the building’s perimeter, adding that “these cracks in the ground parking could have been pre-existing also since this structure is very old.”
Dudhale, however, disputed the claim, stating that the buildings were constructed by MHADA and allotted to residents through a lottery in 2015. “These are not old buildings,” he said.
Source: Hindustan Times
