At least five people have died, and 28 others were rescued so far after a building collapsed in Lucknow's Transport Nagar area on Saturday evening, a senior official said.
According to the official, several people are still feared trapped in the debris of the collapsed building.
"Drones are being used in the evacuation process to hasten the rescue operation...There is information of 5 deaths till now," Uttar Pradesh Home Secretary Sanjeev Gupta told ANI.
"28 people have been rescued, and they have been sent to hospitals for treatment. Several people are feared to be trapped," DM Lucknow Suryapal Gangwar told ANI.
Lucknow District Magistrate (DM) Suryapal Gangwar also visited the hospital where the injured were admitted.
"Monitoring is being done at the top level to ensure that the injured get proper treatment. We will ensure that they receive proper treatment," the DM said.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took cognisance of the building collapse incident and instructed officials to hasten the relief efforts.
He has also asked officials to promptly transport the injured to the hospital for proper treatment. CM Yogi has also wished for the speedy recovery of the injured.
ADG Law and Order Amitabh Yash told ANI that CM Yogi is continuously reviewing the situation and the relief and rescue operations.
"The CM took immediate cognizance and sent the senior officials to the spot so that the rescue operations could be carried out in coordination between all departments and more lives can be saved. NDRF, SDRF, fire services, medical services, electricity department, municipal council and all the other departments are carrying out the rescue operations... The CM is continuously reviewing the situation, and the relief and rescue operations," ADG Law and Order told ANI.
Meanwhile, Union Defence Minister and Lok Sabha MP from Lucknow, Rajnath Singh, expressed sadness over the death in the Lucknow building collapse incident.
In a post on X, Singh said, "The news of the collapse of a building in Lucknow is extremely painful. I have spoken to the District Magistrate of Lucknow over the phone and got information about the situation at the spot. The local administration is carrying out relief and rescue operations on the spot and is engaged in helping the victims in every possible way."
Rescue operations to evacuate the trapped people are underway. The Fire Department, SDRF and NDRF teams are at the spot.
"NDRF, SDRF, fire brigade, and police are carrying out rescue operations at the spot," Municipal Commissioner Lucknow Indrajit Singh told ANI.
