NEW DELHI, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- At least eight people were killed and three rescued Friday after a portion of a state-owned transport building collapsed in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, police said.
The portion of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) building along with its roof collapsed early Friday at Nagapattinam, 312 km south of Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu.
The deceased were identified as crew members.
"Eight people were killed and three rescued when portion of TNSTC building collapsed here today at around 3:30 a.m. local time," a police official said. "The injured who were rescued from the debris were rushed to Karaikal general hospital."
According to police the victims were sleeping at the time of the building collapse.
Authorities have rushed disaster management personnel and firefighters, besides moved in heavy machinery to the spot to carry out rescue work.
Officials said the six-decade-old building was constructed in 1952.
Nagapattinam District Collector C Suresh Kumar visited the spot and ordered an inquiry into the incident, local officials said.
Last month nine people were killed after the concrete roof of a bus terminal collapsed at Somanur area of the state's Coimbatore city.
Deadly accidents due to failing infrastructure (either new or old) are common in India.
Construction experts blame the lax administration and corruption for flouting building rules that often results in using poor quality materials, inadequate supervision and poor safety standards for workers.
