Hyderabad: The seven-storey building under construction that collapsed in Anjiahnagar, Kondapur, on Saturday lacked permission from the Cyberabad Municipal Corporation (CMC), raising serious questions about how the structure was allowed to reach such an advanced stage.The issue goes beyond violations such as inadequate setbacks or unauthorised additional floors. According to municipal authorities, the building had no approval from the CMC. Officials said the locality has several patta lands, with property transactions often carried out through notary agreements.The building had reportedly reached the finishing stage, with electrical works underway when it collapsed. The premises were allegedly being prepared for use as a hostel. The incident has once again brought the spotlight on unchecked unauthorised construction in the western part of the city.Two notices issued, construction continuedCivic officials said the construction began when the locality was under the erstwhile Serilingampally zone of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC). The area subsequently came under the newly formed CMC, which officials said has intensified action against unauthorised structures by identifying violations and issuing notices to owners.“Notices had been served twice on the building owner, directing them to stop construction. As we were preoccupied with the SIR process across the city over the last three months, the building progressed rapidly and reached completion. However, the sudden collapse of the entire seven-storey structure is surprising, as we have never witnessed a failure of this scale,” said a senior official of the CMC town planning wing.Poor-quality material under scrutinyDuring an inspection of the site, officials found the construction material to be of poor quality, with apparent irregularities in the proportions of sand, cement and concrete used. Such deficiencies may have weakened the structure and contributed to its collapse, though the exact cause will have to be established through a detailed technical examination, officials added.2024 incident raised similar concernsThe incident is not the first instance of a multi-storey structure coming up on a small plot in Gachibowli. In 2024, the GHMC demolished a five-storey building constructed on a 50-square-yard plot in Siddique Nagar, Gachibowli, after the structure developed a tilt and posed a threat to neighbouring buildings.The latest collapse has once again brought into focus the risks posed by unauthorised multi-storey constructions in densely populated localities, particularly where buildings are erected without scrutiny of structural safety, plot size and development permissions.
