Seven persons, including three minor children, were charred to death and at least two sustained severe injuries after a massive fire broke out in the slums of north-east Delhi’s Gokulpuri early on Saturday.
According to residents of the slums, the blaze broke out around 12 a.m. While many managed to escape the fire, members of two families lost their lives, including five members of one family and two children of another. The victims were identified as Bablu, 35, his siblings Ranjit, 22, and Reshma, 20, Bablu’s son Shahenshah, 11, and sister-in-law Priyanka, 20, Roshan, 13, and his sister Deepika, 10.
The slums are located below the metro line along a drain near the Gokulpuri Metro Station. Around 60 huts were gutted in the fire, the police and locals said.
Salma, 33, whose hut also was burnt, said, “Most of us were sleeping and as soon as we saw the fire, we picked up our kids and ran out. Within a few seconds, everything was over.”
Ms. Salma lives close to the shanties of the two families who lost their loved ones. During the fire, she said, she saw how one family could not escape. “They had all come out but they realized that Shahenshah was still inside so they all ran back to find him but by then, the fire had spread to the exit point and they could not escape,” she said. She added that while five members of the family died, the parents Munni Devi and Rajjan, their son Sujit and a grandson survived.
Ex-gratia for victims
The residents said fire tenders took at least 90 minutes to reach the site. However, the fire department said that the call was received at 1.03 a.m. after which 13 fire tenders were pressed into service and the fire was doused by 4 a.m. The bodies were recovered during the rescue operation.
Sources said the fire is suspected to have started from an empty plot near the house where the five members died. The police said post mortem of all the victims has been conducted and bodies have been handed over to their families. A case under sections 285A and 304A of the Indian Penal Code has been registered and further investigation is under way.
The Delhi government has announced a compensation of ₹10 lakh to the families of those who lost their lives, ₹5 lakh to families who had lost their children and ₹25,000 to those whose houses got burnt during the incident.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who visited the site of the mishap, assured a speedy disbursal of compensation to the affected families. “I offer my deepest condolences to all the victims’ families. I am very sad that the homes of so many people got burnt in the arson. A poor man builds his jhuggi with great difficulty. It is very sad if someone dies in this circumstance. I pray to God to give peace to those who have died,” Mr. Kejriwal said.
North-east Delhi BJP MP Manoj Tiwari, after visiting the place and speaking to the bereaved families, said, “There should be a judicial inquiry. I also demand that the Delhi government give compensation of ₹1 crore to the affected families in addition to ensuring that the injured get the best possible treatment,” Mr. Tiwari said.
Little hope
Salma also said a fire broke out last year around the same time leaving about 35 shanties gutted but no action was taken for their rehabilitation then as well. “So many politicians and senior officials are coming today and people are flocking around them in the hope of compensation but they will forget in two days,” she said.
Immeasurable loss
Among the dead was a man who was to meet his ailing wife at his village in Uttar Pradesh, a girl who was due to get married later this year and two bright kids.
Bablu was to leave for Unnao on Saturday to meet his wife, his sister Sangeeta said, adding that her sister Reshma, who died with Bablu and three other family members, was going to get married around Dussehra this year. “We had fixed her marriage. No ceremonies had been performed yet but the date would have been fixed for sometime around Dussehra,” she said.
Deceased children Roshan and Deepika’s maternal aunt Somna said, “The couple has four kids and when the fire broke out, they woke them all up and asked them to run out. They thought that all the kids had managed to escape but later realized that Roshan and Deepika had not.”
The tuition teacher of the two siblings sobbed at a corner when she visited the area on Saturday morning. Manisha Pandey, a 21-year-old woman who works at a private company and teaches kids in this slum area, said Deepika and Roshan were “very bright kids and were always willing to learn new things”.
Livelihood impacted
The loss of those who lost their loved ones is immense but this fire also led to many losing their source of livelihood.
Manoj, 30, recalled the night and said the first thing he and his wife Savita did was to lift their kids and take them to a safe point. “I didn’t think about the money and belongings at the time because I had to save my children’s lives. But I risked my life and went back to collect some savings and other items but it had all been burnt to ashes by then,” he said crying. “My cycle, some saved money, TV, refrigerator, our clothes and ration… everything is gone. Even I have had to borrow the clothes that I am wearing today”.
Manoj repairs trunks and bags for which he used to ferry across north-east Delhi on his bicycle. With the fire engulfing his mode of transportation, his source of income is also losttill he is able to make alternative arrangements.
Manoj’s ordeal is representative of most survivors in the incident who now stare at an unforeseen future.
