Courageous Javed dies at Safdarjung

New Delhi, Apr 13 (UNI) Javed, the courageous teenager who saved many children from the inferno at the Victoria Park in Meerut, succumbed to his injuries at Safdarjung Hospital here this morning.

The 18-year-old, who was shifted from Jaiswal Rai Hospital in Meerut with 70 per cent burns last night, died around 0530 hrs this morning, according to Aneeda Begum, mother of Javed.

Javed's family claim that he died due to negligence of the doctors at Safdarjung, as he struggled throughout last night.

Furious at the ''indifferent'' attitude of the hospital authorities, friends of Javed ransacked the ICU breaking the glasses of some gates. The family also claimed that the police has detained four boys -- Arif, Mahfuz, Deepak and Ikram -- inside the burns ward. No official from the hospital was available for comment.

Meanwhile, the Meerut administration has recommended a posthumous bravery award for Javed.

''We have already forwarded our recommendation to the central and the state governments,'' newly-appointed District Magistrate Mukesh Meshram said.

Mr Meshram said the authorities were compiling a list of all those individuals who had helped save people during the tragic incident.

''We are setting up a fund, at the local level, to assist the victims and reward all those brave people,'' he said.

Javed, who hails from Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, was working as a helper in one of the stalls at the electronic fair where the devastating fire on Monday claimed as many as 60 lives.

Javed, who appeared for his 12th board examination from Sarvodaya Boy's Senior Secondary School at west Vinod Nagar in East Delhi, was giving a helping hand to his father Mizaz, who does embroidery work in Mandawali area.

Javed's friend Arif Chowdhary, said, ''when the fire erupted, five of us came out safely. However, seeing several children engulfed by the fire, Javed went into one of the pandals to save them.'' He managed to pull out six to seven children, but got trapped while continuing his rescue efforts. He was later found unconscious, he added.

''It was the financial constraints of the family that forced Javed to take up a job in a private company,'' Aneeda said.

This firm had put up a stall at the fair.

''I wasn't very particular that Javed should work. A lot of people came to see my son and they have praised his efforts and promised all help for the treatment,'' Mizaz said.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi along with Minister of State for Home Sri Prakash Jaiswal had visited Javed at the Jaiswal Rai Hospital ICU and praised his heroic deed.

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