20230510 A year after Delhi’s Mundka fire, kin of victims near closure
India May 10 2023 “Building” “Factories”
Dead : dead more than 10 Burnout : 1 to 29 Injured : injured more than 10
A year after Delhi’s Mundka fire, kin of victims near closure
Updated: 2023-05-10
NEW DELHI: Twenty-seven people died when an illegal factory in building No 145 at Mundka in west Delhi went up in flames on May 13 last year.
A year later, the derelict building has turned into a hub for drug addicts and antisocials. Unlike the building, however, the families of the victims are gradually getting back to normalcy with the help of government compensation and assistance of the authorities.
TOI spoke to the families of the victims on Tuesday. Akbar lost his wife, Nusrat, in the tragedy. “I have three children and all of them know what happened with their mother,” he said. “We are slowly getting back to normal life. But I do rue that I couldn’t see my wife for one last time. All I got were her ashes.”
Asha, who lost her daughter Madhu in the inferno, is grieving still. She regrets not having answered her daughter’s phone call that day. “That missed call turned my life upside down,” said Asha, dabbing at her eyes. “When I didn’t pick up the phone, Madhu called her uncle and informed him about the fire. But before dying my daughter saved several people.”
Soon after the incident, Asha stopped going to work. Her husband, Rakesh, said the pain hadn’t diminished yet. “We received compensation from both the central and state governments,” he said.
Madhu’s cousins Preeti and Poonam too perished in the blaze. “The three of them used to go together to the factory. Poonam was just like Madhu, very talkative, whereas Preeti was quiet. The two girls had started working to pay for the medical treatment of their mother,” said Rakesh.
Resham lost her mother, Ranju, in the fire. The 16-year-old said life without her mother has been unimaginably rough. “She wanted her children to live a good life and that’s why she worked at the factory. I will make sure that her dreams are fulfilled,” Resham vowed.
Nisha, 23, never saw her dreams fulfilled. The breadwinner of her family, she died in the fire. “We had planned her marriage in 2023,” said Meera Devi, her mother, in a choked voice. “My house has been in a shambles after her death. She was not only caring but also protective about me.”
The factory, which claimed the lives of 27 people, has become a den of unscrupulous elements and drug addicts, claimed local residents. On Tuesday’s visit, TOI found broken windows and a deluged basement, with the interiors strewn with the ashy remnants of the fire among which lay the tell-tale plastic glasses used by alcoholics and empty vials discarded by drug users.
“The building caught fire twice after May 13,” said shopkeeper Ravi Kumar. “Drug addicts began using the ruins and we suspect that they caused both the later fires. Thieves have carried away the water taps and electronic equipment.” He said the posting of a security guard didn’t deter the antisocials.
Web Source: The Times of India