The toll in the collapse of a portion of an apartment complex in Virar in Maharashtra’s Palghar district on Tuesday has risen to 17, the chief minister’s office stated on Thursday.

Nine persons have been rescued so far, it added.

A portion of the allegedly unauthorised four-storey Ramabai Apartment in the Vijay Nagar area of Virar collapsed on Tuesday night while a birthday celebration of a one-year-old girl was underway in one of the flats, reported PTI.

Constructed in 2011, the apartment complex had 50 flats, of which 12 collapsed.

“People were dancing and celebrating when suddenly the entire structure collapsed like a pack of cards,” one of the persons who was rescued told PTI.

On Wednesday, the Virar Police arrested Nittal Sane, the builder of the apartment complex, under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita section pertaining to culpable homicide not amounting to murder along with several sections of the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, The Indian Express reported.

Emergency teams comprising personnel from the National Disaster Response Force, police and the fire department are conducting search and rescue operations.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed grief and announced Rs 5 lakh as compensation to the families of those who died.

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar announced that a thorough investigation would be conducted in the matter, promising that “strict legal action will be taken against those found guilty”.

President Droupadi Murmu also offered condolences to the families of those who died and wished for the recovery of the injured persons.

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