4 dead, 3 hurt in fire at Delhi’s Rithala

Four people died and three were injured in a massive fire at an illegal factory in Rithala, New Delhi; authorities are investigating the cause.

NEW DELHI

It took nearly 100 firefighters and a 13-hour operation to bring it under control. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

Four people were killed and three were injured in a massive fire that broke out on Tuesday evening at an illegal four-storey factory building in Rithala, police said, adding that it took nearly 100 firefighters and a 13-hour operation to bring it under control. Police said they have filed a case and are probing the cause of the fire.

The four people who died could not be identified as the bodies were charred, but police said they could be the four persons who were reported missing when the fire broke out. However, they will conduct a forensic test to establish their identities.

“DNA tests will be conducted to confirm the identity of the deceased,” a senior police officer said.

A case was registered under sections 287(negligent conduct with respect to fire), 125A (act endangering life), and 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the BNS, police said.

A fire department official said the building was not fire safety compliant, as it is not governed by an agency, such as the DSIIDC, MCD or DDA.

The fire broke out around 7.30pm on the mezzanine floor, between the ground and first floors, and quickly spread upwards, trapping several workers within the premises of Rana Complex in Budh Vihar, police said. The ground and first floors ran facilities that manufactured ready-made plastic bags, the second floor had a perfumery, and the third and fourth floors were used to store disposable goods. All floors were engulfed in fire within minutes.

Police said the fire department deployed 50 tenders and the fire was doused at 9.10am on Wednesday. They said the units on the ground and first floors were run by Nitin Bansal, 31, whose father Suresh Bansal owns the building. The second floor was rented out to a tenant identified as Anand, and the top two floors to 69-year-old Rakesh Arora.

Three rescued persons, including Nitin Bansal, a 30-year-old worker Rakesh Kumar and a 25-year-old worker Virender were admitted to Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital. Bansal and Kumar were shifted to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital as they suffered 80% burn injuries, police said.

Officials of the fire department said they recovered three charred bodies around 1.15am. “Two bodies were recovered from the staircase on the first floor and one right outside the office on the mezzanine floor. The fourth body was recovered around 7am from the top floor,” a fire officer said.

Firefighters said that they had to break a side wall of the factory as there was no outlet for the smoke and heat, which restricted their access. “Another massive problem was congested lanes and no way for our fire tenders to turn back for refilling. Initially, we lost time because of that,” the fire officer said.