60 killed in Meerut trade fair inferno

Meerut, Apr 10 (UNI) At least 60 people, including women and children, were charred to death and more than 100 injured when a devastating fire swept through a trade exhibition at the Victoria Park here this evening, in the worst-ever such tragedy in Uttar Pradesh in recent times.

However, eyewitnesses said the toll might reach 100.

The authorities said the death toll could be much higher because the bodies were still being extricated from the venue of the blaze, which erupted at 1745 hrs.

Inspector General of Police (Meerut Zone) Narendra Bahadur Singh confirmed the death of more than 50 people in the blaze.

He maintained that it was difficult to give the exact figure at this point of time. ''All I could say was that the number of women and children were higher than that of the men,'' he said.

The official also ruled out any sabotage behind the fire.

State director General of Police Bua Singh told UNI that so far 45 bodies have been recovered and 70 injured rushed to various hospitals.

Mr Singh also ruled out any sabotage behind the incident and said, ''The fire might have been sparked by a short circuit.'' The DIG of Meerut range, R K Viswakarma said nothing could be retrieved from the three pandals, erected for the famous Brand India Consumer Show, because the fire spread rapidly as the pandals were made of synthetic material.

Contingents from the nearby Army installations were also pressed into service for rescue and relief work.

All the city hospitals and nursing homes were flooded with the injured and wailing relatives of the victims as chaos prevailed all over the city soon after the fire.

The authorities had pressed at least a dozen fire tenders into service to extinguish the flames. Huge clouds of smoke were still billowing out of the venue of the fire.

The authorities announced an ex-gratia of Rs two lakhs for the families of each of the victims of the devastating fire.

The families of each of the grievously injured will get Rs 50,000 while those with minor injuries will get Rs 25,000 each.

A magisterial inquiry has been ordered into the fire.

The fire broke out when there were an estimated 4,000 people inside the mammoth tents. DIG Range R K Vishwakarma said about 200 stalls including food counters were participating in the three-day fair, that started on Saturday. The entire structure was centrally air conditioned. Some gas cylinders lying inside the 'pandals' had also exploded.

At least 45 people also sustained burns or were injured in the resultant stampede.

The victims' charred bodies could be seen lying all around the spot.

The fire spread so fast that it reduced three of the four air-conditioned pandals into ashes in just half an hour.

The volunteers and the police were seen searching for bodies with torch lights as the entire area plunged into darkness. The headlights of the motor cars were also being used to search the bodies.

The consumer fair which was organised by a noted event organiser, Milan Events Private Limited, began on April 6 and today was the last day of the fair when the stall owners had announced heavy discount on the prices of the articles.

Hence, the number of visitors, who came from adjoining districts also, had swelled up in the fair. The fair was primarily selling electronic goods.

''In half an hour's time during which the fire engulfed the fair ground, nothing was left in three of the four pandals. All we could see were the bodies. It looked like a makeshift morgue in which bodies lay piled on each other,'' Salman Ahmed, whose sons had set up a shop in the show, said.

Another eyewitness Maheep Kumar said, ''About 2000 visitors had turned up on the last day of the fair, who were caught in a spiral of smoke and fire. The men somehow managed to run out as soon as the fire broke out. Most of those who fell following a stampede were women and children.''

The locals, who were also assisting in rescue operations, alleged that the district administration did not ensure adequate fire safety arrangements before giving a No Objection Certificate to hold the fair. They also alleged that there were only two gates -- one exit and one entry -- for the visitors which were not more than 5 feet wide.

All hospitals had been alerted to cope with the rush of injured victims.

Eye witnesses said the bodies were charred beyond recognition.

Relief and rescue operations were on in full swing.

Several top industries of Uttar Pradesh had put up stalls at the fair.

Wailing relatives of the victims rushed to the spot to locate their near and dear ones.

The eye witnesses also said the victims could include several young girls who were managing various stalls put up at the exhibition.

The authorities have constituted ten-member teams of doctors, which are visiting various hospitals to provide treatment to the injured.

President APJ Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressed shock over the incident.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi also expressed anguish at the tragedy.

Lok Janshakti Party President and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan expressing grief over the incident demanded that the government should provide an immediate relief package of Rs 10 lakh to the family of those killed and Rs 5 lakh to those who were injured.

UNI