With reference to the report on building collapse in Mumbai, India, (April 6) the incident brings to light several facts.

In the absence of certain regulations such illegal construction works simply thrive and thus pose a danger to the lives of the common people.

Builders in general look for vacant plots, enter deals with the landowner; and if residents are living on that plot, they lure them by promising them bigger flats.

In most cases however land is grabbed by force and by illegal means; the landowner is not given the due price, and the residents are not given flats as promised.

Second, many corrupt builders, who intend to do illegal construction, bribe concerned officials in government offices from deputy municipal commissioner down to the peon level.

And the bribe is given in the range of approximately three hundred thousand rupees generally for each floor slab. The bribed officials in turn give a stipulated time frame to the builders to come up with the construction and during which time they will not be touched. And hence a seven-story building comes up within a period of two months. Just imagine the race to complete the building construction — there is no proper watering to the building; and hence it cannot make strong foundation thus making it prone to mishaps.

Third, corrupt builders take into confidence the local politicians like corporators by bribing them too.

Fourth, corrupt builders use cheap materials to offer common masses the flats at cheaper rates.

In a nutshell, if government of India is really concerned about the safety and security of the people, it must stop illegal building construction business, and culprits must be brought to justice as a lot of hard-earned money is invested by the people in buying their flats, and they are nowhere to find a place or shelter, once a building collapses.

Also, it is the responsibility of the people that they should not buy flats of those buildings whose construction has been done on illegal basis. — Anees Lokhande, Alkhobar