NEW DELHI: The fire left 43 people dead while the condition of those injured is not serious and have been kept under observation.
Deceased were Muslim migrants
Almost all the victims that choked to death were reportedly Muslim migrant workers who came from the impoverished states of Bihar and neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.
Of the 43 deceased, 36 were from Bihar.
The Muslim migrants lived and worked in unsafe spaces earning as little as Rs 150 rupees per day by making a variety of garments.
Most of the deceased with the youngest victim believed to be 13 were in their sleep when the fire swept through the market in the early hours of Sunday.
Relatives struggle to prove relation
Sounds of wailing haunted the entire area that is reflective of the pain and anger of family members of those who went through the all-engulfing fire this Sunday morning, in Delhi and now battling for life; or worse, families of those who were brought dead with massive burn injuries.
Family members and relatives who had come to claim bodies of their kin at the mortuary are waiting for the police and the hospital authorities to give permission to take back the bodies.
Sisters Noor Jahan and Fuljadi were animatedly pleaded with the security staff of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital (LNJP) to know whether the two breadwinners of the family are alive or nor.
Later on, they got the news that their dead ones is no more. They waited at the hospital mortuary to claim the bodies of the father and the brother however, the bodies were not released as they fail to establish the relation.
Noor Jahan though, identified the dead on a policeman’s phone but police and hospital authorities asked for evidence to claim the body.
“Today when I went in with my Aadhar card, I was asked to come back with my brother or mother and Abbas’ wife. How will they come here? My brother is in Bangalore and does not want to come, even if he does it will take him more than two days. My mother is very old and cannot travel. And, Abbas’ wife is pregnant. I don’t know what to do,” said Noorjahan.
The family members said it was more painful to see others going back while they wait.
No financial means
The families of the deceased do not have the financial means to transport the bodies.
The procedural formalities after the post-mortem process is adding to their grief.
Some relatives also had a heated exchange in taking the bodies back to their native places.
“There were so many people when we came. They all have left with bodies. We are clueless what to do,” said Himangshu who came back to RML from the Ganga Ram Hospital.