Anaj Mandi fire: Vice President Naidu expresses grief over death of 43 people

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday expressed grief over the death of 43 people in a massive fire that broke out in Anaj Mandi at R Jhansi Road in North Delhi and wished for the speedy recovery of those injured in the incident.

Expressing condolences to the families of those who lost their lives, Naidu tweeted, "Deeply saddened to learn about the loss of lives in a fire accident in Delhi's Anaj Mandi. My condolences to the members of the bereaved families. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured." Naidu's tweet read.

At least 43 people died after a massive fire broke out in a factory in Anaj Mandi area on R Jhansi Road here on Sunday morning, police said.

Around 62 people were taken out by fire tenders from the building that caught fire in the wee hours on Sunday. 34 dead were confirmed by the Lok Nayak Hospital and 9 by the Lady Hardinge Hospital, police said.

Soon after receiving the report, 15 fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the fire and to carry out rescue operations. Given the intensity of the fire, 10-12 more fire tenders had to be sent at the spot.

The fire has been completely doused by the fire brigade teams and all the persons have been rescued from the site.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to families of those who lost their lives in the tragic incident. Additional assistance of Rs 1 lakh has also been announced to those injured. The Delhi government has also ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident and sought a report within seven days.

"The Anaj Mandi fire tragedy is very unfortunate. More than 40 people have died. I have ordered a magisterial inquiry into it. Compensation of Rs 10 lakh each will be given to families of those dead and Rs 1 lakh each to those injured. The expense of medical treatment of those injured will be borne by the government," Kejriwal told reporters after visiting the site of the fire tragedy.

( With inputs from ANI )