Varanasi: Two houses collapse near Kashi Vishwanath temple, 1 killed, 8 rescued

One person died and eight others have been rescued after two dilapidated houses collapsed near the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi on Tuesday. The incident took place early in the morning in the Khoya Gali Chowk area of Varanasi.

Initially, nine people, including a woman police constable, were trapped under the debris, news agency ANI reported. Following efforts by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team, the constable, along with other trapped persons, have been rescued.

The injured persons have been admitted to a nearby hospital. The constable is also undergoing treatment and is stable, police said.

“The rescue operation is about to finish now. 9 people in the family were trapped; all of them were taken out and sent to a hospital. A woman constable who was on duty here has been injured and sent to the BHU Trauma Centre, where she is out of danger. A woman admitted at Kabir Chaura Hospital has been declared dead in a hospital,” ANI quoted Varanasi police commissioner Mohit Agarwal as saying.

NDRF DIG MK Sharma told the media that the rescue operations lasted around four hours. “We will conduct a final search before closing the rescue operation,” he said.

According to Varanasi divisional commissioner Kaushal Raj Sharma, their next priority after the end of rescue operations is to clean the debris and restore the supply of water and electricity in the houses.

Officials said that the dilapidated houses were around 70 years old, news agency PTI reported.

Kaushal Raj Sharma also clarified that no NOCs or permission from the Kashi Vishwanath temple are technically required for any construction or restoration work outside the premises.

“The construction work of the temple started five years ago and was completed two and half years ago. Permission from temple administration is not required for the construction work of any house outside the premises of the temple,” he said.