Kolkata warehouse roof collapse: Death toll climbs to 15 after teen worker dies
Synopsis
A 19-year-old migrant worker from Bihar became the 15th fatality in Kolkata's Taratala warehouse collapse — and investigators say poor materials and a flawed casting pattern are to blame. With no attendance register maintained at the site, the true scale of the tragedy may still be unknown, even as the sanctioning authority faces political scrutiny in the West Bengal Assembly.
Key Takeaways
The Taratala warehouse roof collapse in Kolkata has claimed 15 lives as of 26 June , all male.
Mannu Kumar , 19 , from Munger, Bihar , was the latest to die — at S.S.K.M.
Medical College and Hospital on Friday morning.
13 of the 15 deceased have been identified; 2 remain unknown.
18 workers are still hospitalised, with 2 in critical condition.
The SIT has preliminarily attributed the collapse to poor-quality construction material and a flawed casting pattern .
No attendance register was maintained at the site, making it impossible to confirm the exact number of workers present or still trapped.
CM Suvendu Adhikari told the West Bengal Assembly that the construction was sanctioned by former KMC Mayor Firhad Hakim on 17 January .
The death toll in the Taratala warehouse roof collapse in Kolkata has risen to 15, police confirmed on Friday, 26 June, after a 19-year-old worker succumbed to injuries sustained in the tragedy. The collapse of the under-construction warehouse in the southern outskirts of the city on Wednesday has left 18 others hospitalised, with two in critical condition.
The Latest Victim
Mannu Kumar, a 19-year-old labourer from Munger, Bihar, became the 15th fatality when he died on Friday morning while undergoing treatment at the state-run S.S.K.M. Medical College and Hospital in South Kolkata. He had been rescued from beneath the debris following the collapse. A city police official confirmed his death.
Of the 15 deceased, all are male. 13 have been identified; the remaining two are listed as unknown males. Meanwhile, among the 18 individuals currently receiving treatment at S.S.K.M. Hospital, 17 are male and one is female.
What the SIT Investigation Has Found
A preliminary probe by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Kolkata Police has pointed to a combination of two factors as the cause of the collapse: the use of poor-quality construction material and a flawed casting pattern. The SIT's findings, though preliminary, suggest systemic lapses in construction oversight rather than an isolated accident.
Investigators have also flagged a critical accountability gap — no attendance register was maintained at the site. As a result, police said on Thursday that they could not ascertain the exact number of workers present at the time of the collapse, and the possibility that more people remain trapped under the rubble has not been ruled out.
Political Accountability: KMC Sanction Under Scrutiny
The collapse has triggered a political flashpoint in West Bengal. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari told the West Bengal Assembly on Thursday that the construction was sanctioned by the former Mayor of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and ex-West Bengal Municipal Affairs and Urban Development Minister, Firhad Hakim.
According to CM Adhikari, the construction plan was approved on 17 January and bore the signatures of Hakim and the KMC engineers who examined it. The disclosure raises questions about whether due diligence was exercised at the approval stage, given the SIT's findings on substandard materials and flawed methodology.
What Happens Next
The SIT investigation is ongoing, and a final report is awaited. Rescue and debris-clearance operations continue at the site, with authorities unable to confirm whether all victims have been accounted for. The condition of two hospitalised workers remains critical, and the death toll could rise further. Political pressure is mounting for accountability over the sanctioning process and the absence of basic site safety protocols.
Point of View
Yet the KMC approved the plan anyway. The absence of any attendance register at the site is a damning indictment of labour oversight: it means the state cannot even confirm how many workers it may have lost. With political blame now centring on a former minister's signature, the risk is that accountability gets reduced to a partisan exchange in the Assembly rather than a structural reckoning with how construction projects in Kolkata are approved, supervised, and held to safety standards.
NationPress
26 Jun 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What caused the Taratala warehouse roof collapse in Kolkata?
A preliminary SIT investigation has found that the collapse was caused by a combination of poor-quality construction material and a flawed casting pattern. The findings are preliminary and a final report is awaited.
Who was the latest victim of the Kolkata warehouse collapse?
Mannu Kumar, a 19-year-old labourer from Munger in Bihar, died on Friday morning at S.S.K.M. Medical College and Hospital in South Kolkata, becoming the 15th fatality. He had been rescued from under the debris after the collapse on Wednesday.
How many people are still hospitalised after the Taratala collapse?
18 individuals are currently receiving treatment at S.S.K.M. Hospital — 17 male and one female. The condition of two of them is described as critical by police.
Who sanctioned the under-construction warehouse in Taratala?
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari told the West Bengal Assembly that the construction was sanctioned on 17 January by former KMC Mayor and ex-Municipal Affairs Minister Firhad Hakim, whose signature appears on the approval along with those of KMC engineers.
Why is it unclear how many workers were at the site when the collapse occurred?
Police confirmed that no attendance register was maintained at the warehouse site, making it impossible to determine the exact number of workers present at the time of the collapse. Authorities have not ruled out the possibility that more people remain trapped under the rubble.
