Death toll in fire at Kolkata warehouses reaches 21, several still missing

Kolkata, Jan 28 (IANS) The death toll in the fire that broke out in two warehouses in Anandapur, on the southern outskirts of Kolkata, has reached 21, said the police on Wednesday. 

At the same time, about 27 people are still missing, and a search is on to trace them.

Meanwhile, police have arrested Gangadhar Das, the owner of the burnt-down Pushpanjali decorator's warehouse. He was arrested on charges of death due to negligence.

On Wednesday, he was produced before a court, which remanded him to police custody till February 4.

The Pushpanjali decorator's warehouse was adjacent to a momo company's (Wow Momo) warehouse, which was also completely destroyed in the fire. Similar charges have been filed against the owners of the momo company, but no one from that company has been arrested yet.

Wow Momo on Wednesday said that they have lost three of their employees in the fire incident.

In a statement, the company said that in the early morning hours of January 26, around 3 a.m., a fire from a neighbouring warehouse spread into its premises, completely gutting one of its warehouses in Anandapur.

"Our hearts are immersed with grief and pain for having lost two of our valued employees and a NIS-contracted security guard in this entire catastrophe," the statement read.

The company announced a compensation package that includes a payment of Rs 10 lakh per affected family, a lifetime monthly salary for the bereaved and full educational support for the child in the family. The company further said that the fire from the neighbouring warehouse reportedly started due to unauthorised cooking at that warehouse.

The fire broke out in the two warehouses around 3 a.m. on Monday morning. The fire continued to rage until Tuesday afternoon. Body parts were scattered throughout the burnt-out warehouses. The exact number of people present at the scene at the time of the incident is still uncertain.

The charred remains have made identification of the bodies impossible. According to the police, DNA testing will be conducted to confirm the identities after getting a court order.

An investigation into the cause of the fire has already started. Based on a complaint from the fire department, a case of death due to negligence has been registered at the Narendrapur police station.

The police have also filed a suo motu case under the same section. Acting on these two cases, the Narendrapur police arrested Gangadhar from the Garia area on Tuesday night. Police sources say that investigators will also apply to the court for DNA testing to confirm the identities of the deceased.

Meanwhile, questions are being raised about whether the two burnt-down warehouses in Anandapur had any fire safety measures in place at all.

On Tuesday, the Director General of the Fire Department, Ranveer Kumar, visited the site. He stated that the fire department had not issued any fire safety clearance for the warehouses. He added that there might have been some lapse on the part of the department, and the matter will be investigated.

Many are also questioning why the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) did not take any action in this regard. Claims have been made from various quarters that the warehouses were built on filled-in wetlands.

However, Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim claimed that he was unaware whether the warehouses were located on wetlands. He added that no new wetlands are being filled in.

Meanwhile, Hakim on Tuesday announced that financial assistance will be provided to the families of those killed and missing in the Anandapur warehouse fire.

After visiting the fire site, Hakim announced that each family would receive Rs 10 lakh in assistance. The state minister said that the cheques will be handed over to the families once the bodies or body parts are identified.

On Wednesday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that the job of a civic volunteer will be provided to a family member of each of the fire incident victims.

--IANS

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