Thane collapse brings back painful memories for Laxmi Chhaya residents

Durgesh Kothari almost froze on hearing about the Thane building collapse on Thursday. For the 40-something architect, it was a déjà vu to July 2007 when his family was wiped out in the Laxmi Chhaya building collapse in Borivli which killed at least 30 and injured more than 100.

“My life changed overnight...” said Kothari, making little effort to hold back his tears.
Six years ago, Kothari had waited all night, fingers crossed and a prayer on the lips, hoping his parents, grandmother and younger sister would be pulled out alive from the rubble — until their bodies were brought out.

“For a long time, I blamed god but time has healed my wounds... Somewhere down the line, I struck a truce with the almighty,” he says, adding how his uncle and the extended family has supported him.

Over the last one year, the residents have started moving in. There are no traces of the old Laxmi Chhaya building. Now, it’s a revamped structure — it dons a new look and looks more plush now. While the earlier structure housed 75 flats and shops, the new one has 97.

But beneath the new look and feel of the building, the old memories are still buried for the residents.

Reshma Mehta, whose husband Jatin died in the building collapse, says Jatin’s death has left her mother-in-law completely shattered.

“Besides her, my child too — who was just nine at that time — has been badly affected,” says Reshma, who has had to stand firm in the face of tragedy to take care of her mother-in-law and young one.

“He was the sole earning member and the strength and inspiration of our family,” says Reshma, adding that they have learnt to move on in life but cannot forgive those responsible for the mishap.
Alterations made to a commercial unit housed on the ground floor of the building was said to be the cause of the collapse.

“Even six years later, it still feels like it all happened just yesterday,” says Reshma who intermittently tosses up that question “why me” to nobody in particular.

The tragedy has brought along a few lessons for residents of Laxmi Chhaya. “Now, residents are careful while carrying out interior work to new flats. There’s a sense of maturity and self-discipline after what we’ve gone through,” says Shekhar Seth, chairman of the newly formed managing committee who also held the same post prior to the accident.