Srinagar, Aug 21 - A five-storeyed building, approximately 100 years old, collapsed here Friday afternoon with many people feared trapped inside.

The private building in the heart of city centre Lal Chowk was dilapidated and according to civic officials the owners had been asked to repair it.

The Coronation Building is of historical significance as India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and former chief minister Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah announced Kashmir's accession to India in their famous 1947 public speeches in Lal Chowk near this old edifice.

'Five people were rescued from inside the collapsed building and rescue operation is on,' a police officer told IANS.

The building housed a hotel, a bank and over half a dozen shops in its ground floor.

Lal Chowk was thronged by shoppers and commuters when the accident occurred.