3 weeks ago
Court orders NHAI, contractor to pay Rs 2.23 crore compensation
In Himachal Pradesh, workers were building a wider highway by cutting into a hillside near the city of Shimla.
Cutting the hill made the ground weak, and during the rainy season of 2025, a big multi-storey building next to the road collapsed.
Nobody was hurt because people had already been moved out of the building.
A group of officials who studied what happened said the hill cutting for the road caused the damage.
The family who owned the building lost their home, and their neighbours' houses were also in danger.
A court decided that the road authority, called NHAI, and the construction company must both pay money to make up for the loss.
The court said NHAI could not pretend the damage had nothing to do with its road project.
The court also asked officials to check how much damage happened to the neighbouring house.
The money has to be paid within four weeks, and the court will check again in September.
The Himachal Pradesh High Court ordered NHAI and contractor M/s Gawar Shimla Highway Private Limited to each pay 50 per cent of Rs 2.23 crore compensation for a building collapse during highway construction.
The multi-storey building collapsed on June 30, 2025, at Mathu Colony in the Bhattakuffar area of Shimla after a landslide; there were no casualties because residents had been evacuated.
An inquiry committee headed by Additional District Magistrate (Law and Order) Pankaj Sharma attributed the collapse to hill cutting for the Parwanoo-Dhali four-laning project.
The court noted that neither NHAI nor the contractor had made any payment despite compensation being assessed in July 2025, and directed payment within four weeks.
The court also directed state authorities to assess damage to Chanda Devi's adjoining house and listed the matter for further hearing on September 23.
- Who
- The Himachal Pradesh High Court bench of Chief Justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia and Justice Bipin Chander Negi, ruling on a suo motu PIL; the affected building was owned by Shreya, Shaurya and Ranjana Verma.
- What
- NHAI and M/s Gawar Shimla Highway Private Limited were directed to equally share Rs 2.23 crore compensation for a residential building that collapsed during four-lane highway construction.
- Where
- Mathu Colony in the Bhattakuffar area on the outskirts of Shimla, near the Chamiyana Super Speciality Hospital.
- When
- Judgment was delivered on Monday; the building collapsed on June 30, 2025; further hearing is set for September 23.
- Why
- The collapse was attributed by an inquiry committee to hill cutting carried out for the Parwanoo-Dhali four-laning project.
Affected residents and state authorities
NHAI and project contractor
Responsibility for the collapse
Affected residents and state authorities
An inquiry committee attributed the June 30, 2025 collapse to hill cutting for the four-laning work, and locals confronted NHAI officials over allegations that the hill cutting destabilised the slope.
NHAI and project contractor
The court questioned whether the hillside cutting was done properly and under adequate supervision, while NHAI officials at the site were allegedly manhandled, leading to an FIR and strained relations with the state government.
Compensation for the affected family
Affected residents and state authorities
The court held that NHAI, as the authority responsible for the Parwanoo-Dhali four-laning project, could not disassociate itself from the consequences of construction and must share compensation equally with the contractor.
NHAI and project contractor
Neither NHAI nor the contractor made any payment to the affected family even though compensation was assessed in July 2025, forcing the court to direct payment within four weeks.
Key facts
- Court
- Himachal Pradesh High Court
- Compensation
- Rs 2.23 crore, shared equally by NHAI and M/s Gawar Shimla Highway Private Limited
- Payment deadline
- Four weeks
- Building collapse date
- June 30, 2025
- Location
- Mathu Colony, Bhattakuffar, Shimla
- Highway project
- Parwanoo-Dhali four-laning
- Casualties
- None; residents were evacuated
- Next hearing
- September 23
Sources
Related news
Woman to Challenge Rs 2.23 Crore Compensation for House Collapse
48 National Highway failures since 2021 raise construction quality concerns
No toll till repairs: NHAI acts on damaged Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway
Labourer Killed After Under-Construction Flyover Collapses in J&K
Gadkari Orders Probe, Blacklists Contractor Over Jalgaon Bridge Collapse
NHAI Experts Examine Fatal Expressway Construction Incident in Samba
Odisha Approves Rs 54,000 Crore Water Infrastructure Projects
National Highway Toll Growth Set to Recover in FY28
ED Searches 14 Premises Over Alleged NHAI Toll Fraud
Chittoor Orders Coordinated Action to Reduce Fatal Road Accidents
Ujjain–Garoth Highway Sinks Again, 500-Metre Stretch To Rebuild
