House collapse kills 13 sleeping Indians

A newly built house in northern India collapsed early yesterday killing 13 residents as they slept, the latest in a string of building cave-ins, police said.

The roof of the house suddenly gave way in Uttar Pradesh state, trapping the residents, four of whom managed to escape from the rubble with the help of neighbours, a police officer said.

Police said they were searching for the building contractor after suspecting poor construction was to blame for the accident in Dulhaipur village about 32 kilometres from the city of Varanasi.

A local official said 20,000 rupees would be given to the relatives of the victims as compensation for the accident.

The accident is the latest in a long line of deadly building collapses in India, some of which have highlighted shoddy construction standards.