A First Birthday Turned Funeral: Virar Building Collapse Claims 17 Lives, Entire Family Wiped Out

Palghar: Seventeen lives were crushed under the rubble of the Ramabai Apartment in Virar, a building that local officials admit was poorly constructed and unauthorised. Built over a decade ago with substandard material, the structure had been deteriorating for years before it finally collapsed this week.

On Tuesday night, balloons and cake lit up a modest flat in Ramabai Apartment. Omkar and Arohi Jovil were celebrating their daughter Uttkarsha’s first birthday. Hours later, the cake was still on the table, but the family of three lay buried under rubble. Uttkarsha, her mother Arohi Omkar Jovil (24), and father Omkar Jovil (26) are among the 17 people confirmed dead after a portion of the building in Narangi area of Virar (East) crumbled to rubble.

“Seventeen missing persons have been accounted for, with all bodies recovered. Efforts are now focused on clearing the remaining debris,” District Collector Indu Rani Jakhar confirmed.

The building, constructed in 2012, which housed around 50 flats, suffered a partial collapse on Tuesday night around 12 am, trapping numerous residents. The collapsed part had 12 apartments. Rescue operations, spearheaded by teams from the Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation (VVMC) fire brigade and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), have been underway for over 48 hours, meticulously sifting through the debris. Heavy machinery struggled to reach, forcing rescuers to claw through debris with bare hands at first.

“Every time we found someone alive, it gave us hope,” said an NDRF officer on site. “But too often, we only pulled out the dead.”

Families Wiped Out, Neighbourhood in Shock

The Jovils weren’t the only ones. The collapse killed Sachin and Supriya Nivadkar, along with their 11-year-old son Arnav. “Three lives from one house gone in a second,” said a resident.

The list of the dead runs painfully long: elderly Parvati Sakpal (60), young Deepak Singh Bohra (25), and Rohini Chavan (35), who was one of the last to be pulled out on Thursday. Others include Laxman Kisku Singh (26), Dinesh Prakash Sakpal (43), Dipesh Soni (41), Harish Singh Bist (34), Sonali Rupesh Tejam (41), Kashish Pawan Saheni (35), Subhangi Pawan Saheni (40), and Govind Singh Rawat (28)—each name a story cut short, each age a reminder of futures lost too soon.

Omkar Jovil and Rohini Chavan were among the last two bodies recovered on Thursday, bringing the tragic toll to 17.

“It’s not numbers, it’s people we knew,” said a resident, who lived in the same building.

“Omkar was overjoyed celebrating his daughter’s first birthday — he had done all the decorations himself. But by 11:40 a.m., the building came crashing down, and his happiness turned into tragedy within moments. Around 9:30 a.m., there were nearly a dozen people in the house. I left around 10:30, and his parents and relatives had also gone by then. Only his sister was injured, and she is currently in the hospital,” said a close friend of Omkar.

Survivors Battle Trauma and Injuries

Rescue teams have saved nine people, though many remain in critical condition. Among them is Vishakha Jovil (24), who lost her sister Arohi, brother-in-law Omkar, and niece Uttkarsha. The injured have been identified as Prabhakar Shinde (57), his wife Pramila Prabhakar Shinde (50), Prerna Shinde (20), Pradeep Kadam (40), Jaishree Kadam (33), Mitali Parmar (28), Sanjoy Singh (24), and Manthan Shinde (19). Six of these remain critically injured.

Rescue Delay Sparks Anger

Families of victims have also alleged that rescue operations were delayed due to poor planning. Rescue operations faced major challenges as the collapsed building was tightly surrounded by other residential blocks and chawls. Heavy machinery, including JCBs, could not initially reach the site.

“Only after demolishing 10–12 nearby chawl houses could the machines be moved in,” a VVMC officer said. The delay meant rescuers had to initially clear debris manually, slowing down the chances of saving lives.

Responding to this, Gonsalves said: “The road to the site was extremely narrow, with two more buildings blocking access. We started with manual rescue efforts until the road was cleared for heavy machinery.”

But for many families, that explanation rings hollow. “If they had cleared the road faster, maybe more lives could have been saved,” said a local resident.

Why Was an ‘Illegal’ Building Standing for 13 Years?

When asked why no action had been taken against the unauthorised Ramabai Apartment despite it standing for 13 years, VVMC assistant commissioner Gilson Gonsalves distanced himself from responsibility. “I have joined only five months back,” he said.

On the building’s condition, he added: “The structure was unauthorised, and a notice was issued to the developer in May this year. An engineer’s report was sought, but no technical audit was conducted. We can only proceed when such reports are available.”

VVMC Additional Commissioner Deepak Sawant echoed this stance, stating: “As per rules, structural audits are mandatory every 30 years, or earlier if there is visible damage or complaints. In this case, no report was submitted, nor was any engineer’s audit carried out.”

Residents and activists, however, dismissed these explanations as evasive. “This blame game is not new,” said a local activist. “But why was an unauthorised building allowed to stand all these years? Isn’t VVMC directly responsible for safeguarding lives?”

Meanwhile, Municipal Commissioner M.M. Suryawanshi did not respond to calls seeking comment.

Ignored Warnings, No Audit

Ahead of the monsoon, the Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation (VVMC) had reportedly warned builder Nittal Gopinath Sane (48) about the building’s unsafe condition and directed him to conduct a structural audit. The builder, however, failed to comply. His negligence, residents allege, directly cost 17 lives.

“Had the audit been carried out in time, this tragedy could have been prevented,” said one local resident. Citizens now demand that not just the builder but also the municipal officials who overlooked these warnings be held accountable.

“This is a very sad incident, but the blame cannot be shifted so easily. Action should have been taken right at the construction stage, before people moved in. Notices are often given, but who follows up? Who inspects? In Mumbai itself, how many people have actually been vacated? Instead, a scapegoat will be made, the accused will be out on bail, and no real accountability will follow," said a local leader.

On Wednesday, police registered a case against builder Sane at Virar Police Station. He has been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, for constructing the building without approval and using inferior quality material. He has since been arrested, and investigations are underway under multiple sections.

CM’s Condolences and Relief Measures

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed deep grief over the Virar building collapse and announced a compensation of ₹5 lakh to the families of the deceased.

“We share the sorrow of all these families. The government will stand firmly with them,” read a statement from the CM’s Office.

Disaster Management and Water Resources Minister Girish Mahajan personally visited the site at Ramabai Apartment, reviewing rescue and relief operations. He reiterated the government’s commitment, confirming the ₹5 lakh ex-gratia relief for each bereaved family. Mahajan met with grieving relatives, extended condolences, and visited the injured at a local hospital to assess their condition.

He also directed the Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation to bear the full cost of medical treatment for the injured. “The state government will extend complete support to all affected families,” Mahajan assured.

He was accompanied by MP Dr. Hemant Savara, MLAs Sneha Dubey and Rajan Naik, Commissioner Manoj Suryawanshi, and senior district officials.

A Community in Mourning

The collapse has left the community reeling with loss. At Chandansar Samajmandir, where displaced families are being sheltered, grief is overwhelming. Cries echo as relatives identify bodies; volunteers distribute food and water, but few can bring themselves to eat.

Residents of nearby chawls also complain of neglect.

“We haven’t received any help from the authorities. Our chawl is right next to the collapsed building. We’ve been moved to another location, but no one is checking on us for basic needs like water or food,” said one displaced resident.

Local volunteers and civic officials maintain that essential services like food, water, and medical aid are being provided to all displaced families.

Ticking Time Bombs: The Larger Crisis of Unsafe Buildings

The Virar tragedy has once again exposed a systemic crisis—hundreds of unsafe, unauthorised, and poorly maintained buildings across Vasai-Virar. Thousands continue to live in these structures despite repeated warnings. In a 2019 PIL, an RTI disclosure revealed a staggering 4,95,285 unauthorized units being charged property tax within the VVCMC jurisdiction—despite lacking legal approval. The activist behind the data, Terrence Hendriques, noted he had surveyed 17 localities across Vasai, Virar, and Nalasopara to arrive at this figure. However, VVCMC officials reported only 2,817 illegal buildings in their affidavit to the court.

Instead of initiating demolitions of such dangerous buildings, civic authorities often issue directives for minor repairs, orders that are routinely ignored.

This negligence is not new. Just weeks ago, the collapse of a four-storey building in Nalasopara’s Alkapuri damaged three adjoining structures, all of which had to be evacuated and later demolished.

Urban experts warn that unless immediate action is taken, more such tragedies are inevitable.

Allegations of Nexus

Local leaders have alleged a builder-official nexus behind the mushrooming of such illegal and unsafe constructions. A prominent leader accused VVMC officials of giving protection to builders.

“Builders and officials are playing with people’s lives. The builder is guilty, yes—but the officials who allowed these illegal structures to come up are even more responsible. Strictest possible action should be taken against both.”

The collapse, which occurred just after a child’s first birthday celebration in the building, has devastated the community. Entire families, like the Jovils and Nivadkars, were wiped out in seconds.

As debris continues to be cleared, one question looms large over Virar: How many more ‘unauthorised’ buildings are ticking time bombs, and who will be held accountable before another disaster strikes?