Man killed as hutment wall collapses in midnight rain

Bengaluru,1 October 2017: While the city was drenched in the festive spirit on Saturday, Chinnamma, 55, was engulfed in grief. A part of her house collapsed in Friday night's rain, claiming her son's life. Chinnammaand her sons -Raja, 36, and Manjunath, 29 -were asleep when rain wreaked havoc at their temporary hutment in Sadaramangala, Hoodi. A part of the wall collapsed on Raja, a daily-wager worker. The mishap occurred at 3am when it was pouring across the city. "We found him (Raja) under the rubble; he was still breathing. So we took him to hospital but he died on the way," said a neighbour. Mayor R Sampath Raj visited the spot on Saturday morning, announcing a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the family. He also ordered immediate rehabilitation of all those living in weak hutments. Family couldn't afford better shelter Raja was asleep when rain wreaked havoc at his makeshift hutment in Sadaramangala, Hoodi. He died on the way to hospital, said neighbours. Mayor R Sampath Raj visited the spot on Saturday morning, announcing a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the family. He also ordered immediate rehabilitation of all those living in weak hutments. The Karnataka Slum Development Board had built the quarters in Sadaramangala for the destitute and physically challenged in 2010. Nearly 600 hutments were demolished to make way for 160 cemented quarters.However, Chinnamma couldn't afford to pay the sum of Rs 18,000 in three instalments to build a better house. "They continued to live in the shack all these years as they thought it was better to retain the plot of land it stood on," said Hoodi corporator Hariprasad A C."The houses built by the slum board in the same area have not been damaged by rain. There was no flooding either. It was only this particular house that was damaged because it was poorly built. The mayor has asked us to relocate all families living in such hutments to a nearby area while we construct better dwellings for them," he added. Source: Times of India Posted by: Hira Ikkeri