Chandigarh: An old building near Hotel Mehfil of Sector 17 here collapsed in the early morning on Monday. Luckily there were neither any casualties nor any injuries as the building and the shops in the vicinity were already evacuated due to safety concerns raised by the local administration.
Administrative officials who reached the spot after the accident said the ongoing restoration work in the building caused the collapse as the building had been in shambles for a while and an evacuation order was issued to the shops nearby. The DC office and the famous showroom are located nearby.
According to information, the five-storey building was constructed around 1970 at a prominent location in the city.
The witnesses said when the building collapsed, it seemed as if an explosion took place, leading to panic for a while. The renovation work was going on for about two months. Due to this, the building developed several cracks and the administration sealed the building on December 27.
The police had barricaded the area as a preemptive step to prevent any mishap. Police said the building was rented out and the tenants were carrying out a major renovation work.
Sector 17 shopping plaza is the walkers' paradise designed by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier. Presently, it has virtually been lost after shedding its old-world charm. The shopping area, the pedestrian's paradise that Corbusier designed on the European pattern saw business nosediving since the early 2010s.
Shopkeepers say they lost customers to the air-conditioned Elante Mall and North Country Mall where people love to hang around for hours with a flurry of shopping activities, besides restaurants and bars with a host of entertainment options. A large number of multinational brand outlets have shifted their base to the vibrant shopping hubs, another reason for a decreased clientele in the marketplace.
The closure of Lyon’s Restaurant with its prime location in Sector 17 is a great miss among the old-timers. They say they have fond memories of yesteryears. While others have been using the eatery as a landmark for route direction. Upscale bars and microbreweries elsewhere have left high and dry the Gymkhana Pub, one of the most affordable bars in the city.
The prominent outlets that downed shutters with the winds of change include Kwality restaurant, Blue Ice, Indian Coffee House, Shangrila, Oven Fresh, Anchor Pub, Bhatura King, Deepak Radios and law bookseller Jain General House and Jain Jewellers.
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