NEW DELHI: Rescue teams were combing through the wreckage of a five-storey residential building in the Indian capital on Tuesday, a day after the structure collapsed in Delhi, leaving at least seven people dead.
The building, known as Hostel Daze, came down at about 13:30 local time (08:00 GMT) on Sunday in the Satya Niketan neighbourhood of south-west Delhi, near Delhi University’s South Campus.
Authorities have not confirmed how many people were inside the building when it collapsed or whether anyone remains trapped beneath the debris.
Watch how a hostel building suddenly collapsed in India’s capital, Delhi, leaving at least seven people dead and several others injured.
Rescue teams are searching the rubble as authorities investigate what caused the five-storey building to collapse.#Delhi #India… pic.twitter.com/OXMvOHNujs— Sajjad Tarakzai (@SajjadTarakzai) September 8, 2026
Witnesses told local media that between two and four dozen people may have been inside at the time. Officials have confirmed that 12 people were rescued and taken to hospital, seven of whom died.
The condition and identities of the victims have not been fully disclosed.
Rescue Teams Search Rubble
On Monday morning, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said about 80% of the debris had been cleared, with only rubble from the basement remaining.
The area surrounding the site was sealed off, with police and rescue personnel working amid piles of bricks, concrete and twisted metal.
Teams from India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) used electric saws to cut through iron grills and layers of steel and concrete, while excavators removed debris in the search for possible survivors.
Hostel Daze was the kind of place where college students from outside New Delhi could rent a shared room for about $158 a month.
On Sunday, the five-storey building came crashing down.
At least seven people were killed. Six were 35 or younger, although authorities have not… pic.twitter.com/a6xEHW7vnu
— Global South World (@g_s_world) September 7, 2026
There has been no official confirmation of whether people are still trapped.
An eyewitness told Indian news agency ANI that the collapse sounded “like the rumble of an earthquake”.
“We rushed out immediately; there was a lot of smoke and dust here. The entire building had collapsed. Some bodies were recovered, and they also rescued four students who were still breathing.”
He said people could hear students beneath the rubble calling for help.
A local legislator who reached the scene on Sunday also said some trapped students had reportedly been making phone calls from beneath the debris.
Water And Repairs Probed
Ms Gupta said the collapse was caused by an “accumulation of water, combined with ongoing repair work in the basement”.
The building was reportedly 40 to 50 years old. A nearby shopkeeper told ANI that excavation work had allegedly been carried out in the basement to expand the hostel.
A civic official said investigators were examining whether recent digging or structural work had weakened the building.
“Given the incessant rain, we are examining the possibility of seepage weakening the structure. Repair or other work could also have contributed to the collapse. At this stage, however, it is difficult to establish the exact cause,” the official told the Times of India.
The building’s owner has been arrested, while five senior officials of the Delhi Municipal Corporation (MCD) have been suspended, according to Ms Gupta.
An adjacent building was also evacuated as a precaution, amid concerns about its structural safety.
Students Face Housing Shortage
Hostel Daze was mainly occupied by students, many of whom were believed to have been in their rooms because there were no classes on Sunday.
Satya Niketan is a densely populated student area close to Delhi University’s South Campus, which has five colleges.
A shortage of university accommodation has forced many students from outside Delhi to rely on private hostels and paying-guest accommodation.
“There are 75 students in Sociology Honours class, but only two get a seat in the college hostel. All other students have to live here,” student Sawai Sharma told BBC News Hindi.
He said a bed at Hostel Daze costs about 18,000 rupees ($190; £140) a month.
Another student, Shivam Yadav, said a friend who was inside the building had been rescued from the third floor and taken to hospital.
He described many buildings in Satya Niketan as “overloaded”, saying inspections were not routinely carried out.
Student Ankit Tiwari said conditions in some hostels and paying-guest accommodation were “appalling”, citing cramped rooms and inadequate water and sewage facilities.
Questions Over Safety
The National Students’ Union of India has called for an investigation and demanded that those responsible be held accountable.
Building collapses are a recurring problem in Delhi. Fire department figures cited in local reports indicate that more than 1,000 collapses have been recorded in the capital over the past three years, causing dozens of deaths.
Poor foundations, inadequate construction materials and unqualified workers have been identified among common causes.
The latest tragedy has renewed concerns about the safety of privately operated accommodation in densely populated parts of the capital, particularly areas housing large numbers of students.
In April, 11 people, including three children, were reportedly killed when a residential building collapsed in north-east Delhi.
In 2024, three students died after becoming trapped in a flooded basement at an examination coaching centre in Delhi, triggering public anger and protests over building and safety standards.
