Gurgaon: A 60-year-old retired teacher died on Monday, a day after he was critically injured when the third floor balcony of his house collapsed in Sushant Lok-3.Balconies across all floors of the three-storeyed building caved in one after another after the first collapse. A prospective tenant accompanying the deceased house owner remains under treatment.The victim, Kanhaiya Yadav, a father of two sons, had come from Delhi to house no. 52 of Block B1 along with the tenant. The house had remained locked for nearly two years and neighbours said the prolonged closure and lack of maintenance, combined with exposure to rain, had left the structure dilapidated — cracks had developed in the second-floor balcony.As the two examined the damaged slab on Sunday, it suddenly gave way. “The falling concrete struck the first-floor balcony with such force that it too gave way. The debris then hit the projecting slab on the ground floor, bringing down balcony projections across all three levels in seconds,” a passerby said.Both men were caught in the debris and seriously injured. Yadav was taken to a private hospital where he died. A family living on the first floor was inside the house at the time but escaped, as the balcony fell outwards. The ground-floor residents were away. Archit, Yadav’s son, said his father retired from a govt school in Delhi on July 31 this year. “We are seeking CCTV footage from the concerned agency to know the cause and sequence of events,” Archit said.Officers from Sector 56 police station said no case had been registered, as the incident involved a private property.The incident brought back memories of the Chintels Paradiso collapse on Feb 10, 2022, where a floor gave way and triggered a vertical cave-in through multiple levels, killing two residents.The death has renewed concerns among residents over the condition of ageing houses in Sushant Lok-2 and 3, several of which are around three decades old.RWA president Pawan Yadav said many houses in the area now needed structural maintenance. “Prolonged water accumulation on rooftops can cause dampness and weaken balconies and projecting slabs over time,” he said, adding that residents had repeatedly approached the town and country planning department and other offices, but no permanent solution had emerged. He urged owners of older houses to get balconies and rooftops inspected periodically and carry out repairs in time.District town planner (enforcement) Amit Madholia said the matter concerned the upkeep of private property. “These are privately owned houses and the department cannot directly intervene,” he said.
