Cracks in six-storey building in Shimla, locals blame NHAI for ‘unscientific’ tunnel construction

Cracks developed in a six-storey residential building late on Tuesday night in the Chalaunthi area of Shimla district, triggering panic among residents who blamed the “unscientific” construction and cutting of hills for the making of a tunnel at Shimla bypass by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI).

Although the district administration Shimla constituted a committee to probe the incident, Panchayati Raj Minister Anirudh Singh blamed the NHAI for the situation. Anirudh Singh, who visited the site and interacted with people who were evacuated by the administration, said that the sole responsible for the current situation lies with the NHAI.

“It is the same tunnel that was the reason behind recent reported incidents including the cave-in of a road and the collapse of a five-storey building last year. The blasting for the tunnel construction should be banned immediately. We have issued orders that there should be no blasting in the future,” the minister said.

The incident took place barely one and half months after a road was caved-in at Bhattakuffar reportedly linked to construction of a tunnel by the NHAI. An eight-year-old girl student fell into the cavity. On June 30 last year, a five-storey building collapsed at Bhattakuffar. At that time people had blamed the NHAI for the unscientific construction of the tunnel.

According to officials, large cracks suddenly appeared in the six-storey building, forcing authorities to vacate the premises during the night. About 10 families residing in the building were rendered homeless and had to leave their homes amid severe cold. Subsequently, cracks were also noticed in a nearby hotel and another residential building, following which these structures were also evacuated to prevent any untoward incident.

Deputy Commissioner Shimla Anupam Kashyap said, “A committee was constituted under the chairmanship of SDM Shimla (Rural) Manjeet Sharma to assess the damage caused to the houses. The four-lane construction work at the site has been halted. The committee is expected to submit its report within a week, following which compensation proceedings will be initiated.” A team of the geologist department has also begun a separate assessment, he added.

Police temporarily closed traffic on the adjoining road and shifted affected residents to nearby safe locations. The incident occurred along the Bhattakufar-Chalaunthi stretch, where four-lane highway construction work is underway under the NHAI. Local residents alleged that tunnelling and excavation work for the four-lane project had weakened the ground, posing a serious threat to residential buildings. Several houses in the area had earlier also been evacuated due to similar concerns.

Sudershan Devi, a local resident, said, “Minor cracks had started appearing in their buildings two to three days earlier and the issue was reported to the construction company and district administration. However, they claimed that company officials had declared the structures safe at the time. The sudden development of major cracks during the night forced residents to rush out of their homes”.

The authorities shut the Dhalli–Sanjauli bypass for heavy vehicles. Police in Shimla diverted heavy vehicles heading towards Upper Shimla, Mashobra and Karsog to alternate routes. Buses coming from Upper Shimla were allowed to enter the city via Bhattakufar, while buses heading towards Upper Shimla were diverted through the Dhalli tunnel.

The traffic diversions led to severe congestion in several parts of Shimla, particularly in the Sanjauli area, where long traffic jams persisted throughout the day, causing inconvenience to commuters and patients.