The Chandni Mahal building collapse tragedy could have been averted had the state police officials and MCD been more vigilant, the Delhi police on Wednesday told a local court.
“Discrepancies/lapses on part of MCD officials and staff of police station Chandni Mahal have been found,” it said in an inquiry report filed before special judge A.K. Mendiratta.
The inquiry report was filed in pursuance of December 31, 2011, order by which the court had sought a probe into the role of local police and MCD officials in the Chandni Mahal building collapse. The Delhi police said a work-stop notice was issued by MCD on September 16, 2011, but “the junior engineer and the assistant engineer of the city zone did not take any action to stop the demolition/ construction work.” “If the MCD officer had taken suitable action to stop work at 833, Chandani Mahal, the tragedy that occurred on September 27, 2011, could have been averted,” it said in the inquiry report.
“Inspector Satish Kain, the then SHO Chandni Mahal and ASI Shish Pal, division officer of the area also failed to serve the work-stop notice instantly upon the owner and contractor,” the police said.
The notice was served only on September 25 though it was received by them on September 19.

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Tihar to count juvenile prisoners
age correspondent
New Delhi, Feb. 8

The Delhi high court on Wednesday asked the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) to conduct a survey of the Tihar jail to ascertain the number of prisoners who claim to be juveniles.
The court also asked the Tihar jail authorities to file a separate report on the issue by March 21.
A division bench asked the NCPCR and Tihar Jail authorities to specify the number of undertrials and also convicts who claim themselves to be juvenile.
The bench was hearing two pleas on juvenile delinquents — one alleging that they are often lodged in the jail along with hardened criminals after their arrest and the second alleging that 74 underage offenders had died in various observation homes.
Taking cognisance of a letter by Anant Kumar Asthana, an advocate of Juvenile Justice Board, the bench had earlier converted it into a PIL. In his letter, Asthana claimed that around 140 children were first lodged in Tihar Jail after their arrest and were later shifted to various juvenile homes between October 2010 and August last year. He alleged that the police makes no effort to ascertain if a criminal is a juvenile while picking him up. The police arrests juvenile delinquents, often ignoring documentary proof put forward by their families, Asthana said, adding that the children, however, were later found to be juveniles by courts.
The court was also hearing another plea by social activist Veena Banerjee alleging that 74 children had died in various juvenile homes.