At least seven people died and dozens were feared trapped when a building collapsed in Indiainfo-icon's financial capital of Mumbaiinfo-icon on Thursday, after days of heavy rain swamped the city.

Rescuers using diggers could be seen sifting through the remains of the four-storey residential building which gave way around 08:40am (03:10 GMT) in the densely populated area of Bhendi Bazaar.

It was the latest deadly housing collapse to strike the teeming metropolis - shining a spotlight on poor construction standards in the Asian country - and came after heavy rains and inundations in the city killed more than 10 people.

A spokesman for the Mumbai civic authority's disaster control team said seven bodies had been pulled from the rubble.

Thirteen injured have been rescued from the rubble. Two firemen also have been injured during the rescue operations, AFP news agency reported.

An official in the control room of India's National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said at least 40 people were believed to be stuck inside.

"A 43-member team is conducting rescue operations," the NDRF official said.

Eight or nine families were believed to have been living in the building, the official said.

Later reports suggested more rescuers had joined the search operation.