Prayed to God, had faith in my karma: Rajesh Doshi

The only thing Rajesh Doshi, 57, remembers about the building collapse is sleeping on his black bed and then being enveloped by a layer of darkness that lifted only over 12 hours later.

It was 10.46 am on Tuesday morning when the fire brigade received the call about Ghatkopar's Sai Siddhi Cooperative Housing Society.

"I was sleeping on my bed one second and the next the building had collapsed," said Doshi, whose business deals in finance. Doshi, a resident of the fourth floor of the building, lived there with his wife Rita and 23-year-old son Darshan. Being diabetic, he had been restricted to his bed for the past month due to pus formation in his right leg.

Doshi found himself nestled against two pillars that kept him safe but also trapped. "There was complete darkness but there was close to two feet space around me. I could move my arms and my phone was right next to me," Doshi said.

He spent most part of the day in complete darkness, praying to be rescued safely. Initially, his phone did not have network but that changed at around 4 pm. "I called my son to inform him that I was safe," Doshi said, whose son alerted the fire brigade after receiving his call. It was at 10 pm when Doshi was found and was given food and insulin shot to maintain his blood sugar levels. The rescue workers managed to drill through the pillar and help free Doshi after 1 am after which he was taken to the hospital.

"I was sure I would be rescued. I believe in my karma and I kept praying to God," Doshi said. "He has small fractures on his leg and a few scratches. The injuries are not major," said Dr Praful Lokhande, who runs the 50-bed hospital.

Timeline

10.46 am: Fire brigade receives a call about building collapse4.00 pm Rajesh Doshi gets network on his phone, calls his son10.00 pm Rescue officials find Doshi trapped in the debris, give him food. They start trying to free him from below the pillars2.45 am Doshi finally freed after being rescued from under the pillar