Patna, Nov. 17: Away from home, 25 migrants from Bihar lost their lives in New Delhi when the building they lived in collapsed. Many more are living dangerously at home, in the state capital.

Several residential buildings in the city are on the verge of collapse. With loose bricks and plasters falling all over, tragedy can strike some of the Bihar Housing Board Corporation buildings any day. Time is ticking on several others, including those at the New Ambedkar Colony at Yaarpur area.

The Middle Income Group (MIG) flats of the Bihar Housing Board Corporation at the Kankarbagh area present a sorry picture. Some of the flats were never plastered. Those were, have lost. Banyan trees jutting out of them have weakened the buildings. So have the seeping water.

Pawan Kumar Gupta, who lives in a flat at Sector-3, said: “You can look at the buildings and assess the situation. One of the buildings of the same sector collapsed on June 21 this year, killing three people. Still, the Housing Board Corporation is not bothered.”

Gupta said he had bought his three-room flat for Rs 75,000 on instalments in 1985.

“As there was no maintenance work, I stopped paying instalments with several others. The housing board is trying to fox us saying that the interest rate has gone up and now I will have to pay Rs 1.75 lakh for the same flat. How can that be possible?”

He added, “The board officials come here and ask us to vacate the flats. But we are also adamant. We are poor people and cannot afford to live on rent anywhere. We will pay up the remaining installments if they improve the flats. We are living in danger.”

The scene at the Low Income Group (LIG) flats is no better.

Praveen Kumar, who lives in the block-4 of the colony, said: “We don’t care anymore. But the incident in New Delhi has scared our families. These flats can give in any moment. One crumbled this rainy season. It is hell living here but we don’t have any option.”

Repeated attempts to contact the officials of the Housing Board officials proved futile. They simply refused to comment on the dilapidated state of the buildings before inspecting them.

Cut to the New Ambedkar Colony at Yaarpur area under the Mithapur overbridge. The scene is the same — broken pillars and plants peeping out of walls. Most of the residents of the two- to three-storey buildings here refused to speak. “Chale jaiye yaha se (go from here),” said one of them.

“You want to remove us from here? That will not happen,” said another.

An elderly person said: “Just see how people live here. If one of us dies in a mishap, at least someone from our family will get compensation.”

The quarters of the teachers of the Patna University are also in a bad shape.

In Saidpur area, the broken three-storey building, once dwelled by the fourth grade employees of the Patna University, greets visitors.

“This structure collapsed around 3.15 am on July 13. One girl child died and several others were injured,” said a resident of the area.