A portion of a building in the Bowbazar area, which adjoins a plot where a developer is constructing a building, collapsed on Tuesday morning.
Residents of the building alleged they had a close shave as chunks of the ceiling on various floors collapsed under the impact of the work at the adjoining site.
Police said they have not received any complaint from the family, but the developer has agreed to repair the damaged portions of the house.
“My nieces were sitting on the bed in one of the bedrooms on the first floor of the house and had a close shave when a portion of the ceiling fell,” said Sagarika Patra, a resident of the house.
The plot on which the three-storey building — 6/1A Ram Kanai Adhikari Lane — stands is located next to 7 Ram Kanai Adhikari Lane, where the construction work is going on.
Some of the residents of the building said it is three centuries old.
The house belongs to the Patras who have been living here for around 300 years, one of the Patras said.
Gopal Patra, who has retired as professor at Rabindra Bharati University, is the eldest member of the family. His brother Nilmoni is no more.
“My father-in-law (Gopal Patra), my husband, our son and I live in this house, along with Nilmoni Patra’s son, daughter-in-law and their two daughters,” said Sagarika.
The family complained that their home shook violently on Tuesday morning and several portions of the ceiling on the various floors came off. The three-storey building has four rooms on every floor.
A neighbour said their house, too, “shook”, making them believe that an earthquake had struck.
One of the Patras said their house shares a boundary wall with the adjoining plot and the building was “badly affected” when labourers engaged by the promoter tried to reduce the width of the wall.
“The promoter should have been more careful while dealing with an old building like ours. We repair our house every year, but one should keep in mind that it is three centuries old. Necessary precautions should have been taken,” said Partha Pratim Patra, Sagarika’s brother-in-law.
“We have been facing this problem since the construction on the adjoining plot started four months ago.”
Later in the day, the family said, they were called for a meeting at Muchipara police station, where the developer, Wasim Khan, offered to repair the damaged portions of the house.
“The promoter approached us and offered to repair the damaged portions of the Patra residence. The family has agreed to the proposal. A structural engineer is supposed to visit the site around 11am on Wednesday,” said a police officer.
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation and the police said the developer has all the required documents for the construction.
Khan did not answer calls from this newspaper. Later, his phone was found to be switched off.