New Delhi: Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) Monday suspended five South zone officials, including deputy commissioner Rakesh Kumar, a day after a PG building collapse in Satya Niketan claimed seven lives.The other four suspended officials are superintending engineer Ranvir Singh, executive engineer (building) Lalit Kumar Goel, assistant engineer (building) Sunil Chauhan and junior engineer (building) Ashish Kumar. All five, suspended under DMC Services Regulations, 1959, would be paid subsistence allowance as admissible under the rules.In a post on X, CM Rekha Gupta said: “The building owner has been arrested. Immediate sealing of buildings with unauthorised fifth floors has been ordered across Delhi. Nearby PGs and buildings are also being thoroughly inspected. Strict action, including sealing, will be taken against violations. Delhi govt has taken the matter with utmost seriousness. Anyone found guilty or responsible will not be spared.”Gupta said accumulation of water, combined with ongoing repair work on the structure, may have resulted in the collapse. Stressing that there would be “no compromise on public safety”, she stated, “A policy will be brought to make periodic structural audits and building safety certification mandatory for all buildings used for public activities, including PGs, nursing homes, schools and other institutions. No public activity will be permitted in any such a building until its safety is duly certified.”Sources in govt, however, said there are height restrictions of 17.5 metres that people need to adhere to. In cases where these are being flouted, authorities first need to examine whether there are any structural safety issues. “If there is no structural safety, notices can be issued for the removal of the unauthorised and illegally constructed portion,” a source said.According to mayor Pravesh Wahi, “Although the building was not classified as dangerous, the owner was carrying out work in the basement.” He said a magistrate inquiry has been ordered and a report is awaited. The deputy commissioner’s suspension, he added, was “aimed at setting an example” and “ensuring lapses are not repeated”.Wahi cautioned residents against making structural alterations to buildings, particularly changes to pillars, warning such modifications could lead to loss of life. He said in future, any building found to have construction beyond four floors would be sealed and action would also be taken against officials responsible for the area, including suspension.MCD commissioner Sanjeev Khirwar told TOI there has been no confirmation of any construction activity so far. “But going by the locals’ allegations and the ongoing inquiry, officials have been suspended. MCD has zero tolerance for unauthorised construction,” he said, adding the building was constructed in 1970s, with some repairs undertaken in 1990.According to an official, “The building is located on 9 metres right of way notified as a commercial street in 2007. The basement was constructed around that time only. However, there was no RCC pillar and it was built using a load-bearing wall. We believe some repair work might have been carried out on this wall, leading to the collapse.”Rakesh Kumar, an inductee from Bihar Administrative Services, was promoted in 2025 when he was serving as deputy commissioner, Civil Lines zones. During his tenure as DC in South zone, three major incidents have taken place – the building collapse at Said-ul-ajaib, the Hauz Rani fire, and Sunday’s building collapse in Satya Niketan.In 2008, MCD had suspended deputy commissioner A K Singh of Shahdara North zone after an under-construction building came crashing down in northeast Delhi’s Brahampuri, claiming several lives and leaving many people injured.
