August 14, 2008	Thursday	Sha'aban 11, 1429

MUMBAI, Aug 13: At least 20 people died and 21 others were injured on Wednesday when part of a four-storey building collapsed in Mumbai, police said.

“The back portion of the building, which was over 60 years old, collapsed suddenly when people were asleep,” a police official said.

“The death toll stands at 20 so far” from the pre-dawn collapse, he said.

Fire brigade workers and volunteers were forced to dig through the debris with shovels and bare hands in a frantic search for survivors, as the bylane where the building was located was too narrow to bring in heavy equipment.

Police said more victims could still be trapped under the rubble.

The chief minister of Maharashtra state, Vilasrao Deshmukh, visited the site, and promised an investigation into the cause of the building’s collapse.

Such incidents are common in India where dwellings often collapse due to poor construction materials, lack of building regulations and heavy rains.

Mumbai has been experiencing heavy monsoon rains, weakening flimsy structures.

Police, farmers clash: At least three people were killed and scores injured in clashes between police and farmers on Wednesday in a suburb of the Indian capital, police said.The violence erupted after farmers went on a rampage to protest what they said was inadequate compensation for their land, which was acquired by local authorities for industrial use.

Police Inspector-General V.S. Pandey said three people were killed, one of them a policeman, after teargas failed to disperse the thousands of farmers who had taken to the streets.—AFP