HT Morning Brief September 7: Delhi's crumbling infra claims lives again, Mahadev mastermind's homecoming delayed

Six people died and five were injured when a five-storey building housing Delhi University students collapsed in Satya Niketan on Sunday. Rescue teams from the National Disaster Response Force and the fire department continued operations as officials feared an unknown number of people remained trapped.

The collapse has renewed scrutiny of Delhi's fragile infrastructure and weak enforcement. A senior Municipal Corporation of Delhi official said the building had no sanctioned plan and included unauthorized construction in its basement. The case has raised questions about how the structure escaped detection in an area where multi-storey paying guest buildings have expanded for years.

The tragedy is part of a series of incidents that has shaken the capital and focused attention on poor regulatory systems and the lack of effective monitoring to stop violations. Satya Niketan's transformation from a low-rise settlement into a dense student hub has included construction that, according to senior MCD officials, often took place outside approved rules.

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as young as possible

India's bid to bring back Sourabh Chandrakar, described as the mastermind of the ₹6,000-crore Mahadev online gambling racket, has also encountered a diplomatic complication. Indian agencies learned that the UAE has submitted its own extradition request to Oman. Even if India wins its case, officials said, the process could take months or years and New Delhi would then have to await Oman's decision on the UAE request.

In defense aviation, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is preparing to deliver the first batch of delayed HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft to the Indian Air Force. Three aircraft, two built in Bengaluru and one in Nashik, are ready for delivery, according to officials familiar with the development. The planes are intended to support the air force's growing pilot-training requirements.

In chess, 15-year-old Yagız Kaan Erdogmus of Bursa, Turkey, says he wants to become world champion as young as possible, ideally younger than Gukesh, who became the youngest undisputed world champion at 18. His coach, Azerbaijan grandmaster Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, has set a 2900 rating as their target. Erdogmus told Hindustan Times that Gukesh's victory had a major impact on him.

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Gukesh winning the world title had a huge impact on me