New Delhi, Sep 13 (PTI) It was a stroke of luck for the 13 members of the Aneja family, who occupied three of the four floors of the ill-fated building that collapsed in Delhi's Sabzi Mandi area, as all of them, barring one, were not home when the structure came down on Monday.

The incident, however, claimed the lives of two brothers aged seven and 12. The duo was passing by with their mother when they got crushed under the falling bricks of the building in the north Delhi colony where houses have been built cheek-by-jowl.

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Eighteen-year-old Aryan Aneja, the only family member who was inside the house, had a lucky escape as he managed to get out in the nick of time.

"I was on the second floor when a huge portion of the building collapsed. I don't know how but I escaped unhurt. It's only due to my fate the I escaped," Aryan Aneja said.

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The Anejas were living in the building for the last 35 years and the families of each of the three brothers occupied the first, second and third floors.

Ongoing renovation work in a milk shop on the ground floor of the around 75-year-old building is believed to have triggered the collapse.

“The building collapse has brought us on the road. Only my nephew Aryan was inside the building when the incident took place. But he managed to escape,” said Hemantica Aneja (40) said.

“I was with my husband in a school nearby. Somebody informed us about the incident and we rushed to the site,” she added.

Hemantica Aneja claimed an electronic drilling machine was being used for the renovation work which she held responsible for the incident.

"They used an electronic drilling machine during the ongoing renovation work which led to the collapse...It was a well-maintained building. We were already living here for years. We never got any order claiming the building was dangerous… everything was fine,” she said.

"For the last 10 days, we had been constantly telling the concerned people that the renovation work was causing cracks in the walls. So, we requested them to take professional help,” she added.

With no roof over their head, the Anejas have taken shelter in a neighbour's house.

Meanwhile, police said they have registered a case against a man named Mohak Arora who had undertaken the renovation work on the ground floor of the building.

Also trapped under the debris was 72-year-old Ramji Das, who suffered a head injury, but was eventually rescued and rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. He is stated to be out of danger.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)