Around 8.30 pm on January 21, right after a child exited the lift from the 23rd floor in Block B of Rishabh Cloud 9, a society in Ahinsa Khand II, Indirapuram, the counterweight buffers of the elevator came crashing down.
The tiles on the wall of the elevator shaft were dragged drown with the weights. No injury has been reported by residents.
"The explosion was so loud that we thought there was a bomb blast nearby," said Saket Jain, a resident. "It took us a while to understand what had happened. As soon as the lift doors closed, the cabin had sunk about 6 inches. Soon after, the weights came crashing down."
The residents revealed that they had been dealing with a lot of issues with their builder for a long time for not ensuring proper maintenance of the services in the society. "The lift was already in poor condition, as were the cables holding the weight of the cabin. Using the lift was risky. A tragedy was averted today," said Showbick Majumdar, another resident.
"A couple of panic-stricken residents called around 8.30 pm, informing me of the incident," said Pradeep Tripathi, SHO, Indirapuram. "The residents are demanding an FIR against the builder and the maintenance agency, and I have asked one of them to lodge a complaint by tomorrow, January 22."
Jabbar Ahmed Khan, the maintenance manager of the society, when asked about the status of repair and restoration in the society, said, "My maintenance agency, Willbrose India, has been carrying out regular maintenance work. There is no lapse from our end."
He refused to speak any further when asked about the maintenance of the elevator column and the renewal of the no-objection certificate.
"Rishabh Buildwell is a pathetic builder. It is yet to give us the handover," said a resident, on condition of anonimity. "This is why we are yet to have our own RWA. We pay Rs 5,000 every month for maintenance but get nothing in return."
