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The collapse of an illegal multi-storey structure in Mumbai's Mankhurd that killed six people has renewed focus on redevelopment delays, unauthorised construction and enforcement gaps in the city's eastern suburbs. Officials said the building stood on government-owned land and collapsed onto an adjoining authorised dwelling during heavy rainfall. The incident has highlighted longstanding challenges involving ageing housing, weak soil conditions, delayed rehabilitation and recurring illegal construction across one of Mumbai's most vulnerable urban settlements.
The collapse of an illegal multi-storey building in Mumbai's Mankhurd, which claimed six lives during heavy monsoon rainfall, has once again drawn attention to the redevelopment, rehabilitation and enforcement challenges facing one of the city's most vulnerable housing clusters.
The incident occurred in the Janata Nagar locality of Mankhurd, where an unauthorised four-storey structure collapsed onto a neighbouring authorised dwelling, resulting in the deaths of a woman and five children. Authorities said the building had begun tilting hours before the collapse, prompting occupants of the illegal structure to vacate. However, the adjoining family's home bore the impact when the building gave way.
According to civic officials, the structure had been built illegally on land owned by the Mumbai Suburban Collector's office. Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde stated that while the collapsed building was unauthorised, the victims were residing in a legal structure onto which it fell. Police have since arrested the building owner and contractor, while cases have also been registered against those allegedly responsible for facilitating the unauthorised construction.
The tragedy has renewed concerns over the Mankhurd-Shivaji Nagar belt, where informal settlements, ageing chawls and unauthorised multi-storey buildings have expanded over several decades. Much of the area has developed on reclaimed marshland and low-lying terrain with poor soil-bearing capacity, conditions that become increasingly unstable during prolonged monsoon rainfall. Combined with ageing masonry, inadequate foundations and repeated vertical additions, these factors have made the locality particularly vulnerable to structural failures.
Officials said the locality accommodates more than 1,000 housing units on government-owned land, many exceeding the permissible construction height. While enforcement agencies have periodically undertaken demolition drives, unauthorised structures often reappear shortly afterwards. Authorities attribute the problem to overlapping jurisdiction between the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and state agencies, alongside rehabilitation requirements that complicate large-scale demolition. Government officials noted that a significant proportion of structures were built before 2011, requiring eligible occupants to be rehabilitated before demolition can proceed.
Urban planners have long argued that redevelopment in Mankhurd requires an integrated approach combining rehabilitation housing, stronger enforcement and infrastructure upgrades. Existing buildings frequently house multiple families beyond their original design capacity, while continued water seepage during successive monsoons further weakens structural stability. The shortage of affordable formal housing has also contributed to continued vertical expansion of informal settlements despite repeated enforcement action.
The latest collapse has once again highlighted the urgent need to accelerate redevelopment of ageing and unauthorised housing clusters while improving coordination between civic and state authorities. As investigations continue into the cause of the incident, the focus has shifted beyond a single building to the broader challenge of addressing unsafe housing conditions and redevelopment delays across Mumbai's eastern suburbs.
Source: PTI
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