New Delhi, 22 June (H.S.):

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday met the families who lost their loved ones in the tragic building collapse in Saidulajab and the devastating fire at Hauz Rani in Malviya Nagar. During the meeting at the Delhi Secretariat, she handed over ex gratia assistance of Rs 10 lakh each to the affected families.

Expressing her condolences over the loss of lives in both incidents, the Chief Minister said the pain of such an irreparable tragedy could not be expressed in words. She asserted that those responsible for the incidents would not be spared and said the government was taking concrete measures to prevent the recurrence of such tragedies in the future.

Gupta said the lives lost in the Saidulajab building collapse on May 30 and the fire incident in Hauz Rani on June 3 could never be replaced. She noted that the Saidulajab tragedy claimed the lives of promising young people who had dreams of a bright future, while the Hauz Rani fire wiped out two generations of the same family. She said the loss was not only that of the affected families but of society as a whole.

Addressing the bereaved families, the Chief Minister said no words could lessen their grief and pain. She added that no government and no amount of financial assistance could ever bring back their loved ones. While no price could be placed on a human life, she assured the families that the Delhi government stood firmly with them like a member of their own family during this difficult time.

Gupta reiterated that those responsible for the tragic incidents would not escape accountability under any circumstances. She said the causes of both incidents would be thoroughly investigated and strict action would be taken against the guilty in accordance with the law.

On the occasion, the Chief Minister presented ex gratia assistance to the next of kin of those who died in the Saidulajab building collapse. The beneficiaries included Ramesh Chandra, father of the late Ekta Chaudhary; Ram Prakash, father of the late Ravi Prakash Verma; Rajesh Kumar, father of the late Kapil; Sanjay Kumar, father of the late Nalin; Satyavan Verma, father of the late Alok; and Jai Raj Ojha, husband of the late Parvati Ojha.

She also handed over financial assistance to the families affected by the Hauz Rani fire tragedy. The beneficiaries included Saroj Devi, wife of the late Ashok Kumar Goyal; Sachin Agrawal, representing the families of the late Kamla Agrawal and the late Jawari Lal Agrawal; and Ramesh Prasad, representing the family of the late Shrutika Barnwal.

The affected families urged the Chief Minister to implement stronger and more effective measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. They also raised concerns regarding administrative arrangements and the emergency response system.

Listening carefully to the concerns of the families, Gupta said the government was not treating the incidents as isolated accidents but as important lessons to further strengthen public safety. She said the Delhi government had already initiated the necessary measures to prevent such incidents from recurring and was working to reinforce the city's safety infrastructure.

To curb the increasing number of fire incidents in the national capital and ensure a faster emergency response, the Delhi government is preparing a dedicated fire safety plan. Under the initiative, the capacity of the Delhi Fire Services will be enhanced, and compact firefighting vehicles capable of quickly accessing narrow lanes and densely populated areas are being procured.

Malviya Nagar MLA Satish Upadhyay and senior officials from the concerned departments were also present during the meeting.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar