The three-storey building, which killed 15 people on Monday in a tragic fire, was issued a demolition order in 2016 due to unauthorized construction, which was canceled in less than two months.
In a statement issued by the Uttar Pradesh government, the building was originally allotted to Vijay Kumar, Rameshwar Sahai’s son, on July 11, 1980, under a rent-purchase scheme through the lottery system, PTI reported.
In 2005, the property was registered in the names of Vijay Kumar and his wife Usha through a sale deed. The couple later sold the property to Virendra Pratap Shukla and Surendra Pratap Shukla on 19 January 2013. The Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) completed the boom for Virendra and Surendra on 7 August 2014.
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The building, which measures approximately 1,992 sq ft, was approved for residential use on 20 August 2014, under the Self-Certified Building Plan Scheme. However, unauthorized construction work was later discovered in the building, following which the LDA registered a case against Virendra Pratap Shukla.
After an investigation, a demolition order was issued against the unlicensed building on May 10, 2016. The order was canceled two months later on July 5, 2016, raising questions about the circumstances under which the decision was overturned, according to the statement.
What happened?
At least 15 people, most of them students, were confirmed dead, and nine others injured after a deadly fire broke out at Usha Mehta Marg in Lucknow’s Aliganj area on Monday.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath cut short his visit to Aligarh and rushed to the accident site. He formed a two-member special investigation team to investigate the tragedy.
Adityanath also announced a donation from $5 thousand for each family of the dead $50,000 for the injured. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the bereaved families and announced an ex-gratia $2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) to the kin of each deceased, while the injured will receive $50,000.
Uttar Pradesh Urban Development and Energy Minister AK Sharma said preliminary investigations suggest that the fire may have broken out in the building’s air-conditioning duct, where smoke led to suffocation due to lack of a proper exit route, adding that possible lapses in construction standards would be investigated, according to PTI.
After the fire was brought under control, stretchers were moved inside through a nearby building. Rescue personnel also cut a hole in the wall to facilitate the movement of stretchers inside the damaged structure.
(With inputs from PTI)
