NEW DELHI, Dec. 9 -- Lawmakers in India's upper house of parliament Rajya Sabha on Monday observed a two-minute silence over the death of 43 people in Sunday's massive fire that broke out in an illegally-operated building in north Delhi.
The four-storey building is located in the middle of a congested residential area. Media reports said among the dead four were charred to death while the rest died of suffocation as they couldn't run to safety.
Raw materials like paper, cardboard, and plastic used in manufacturing school bags and other packaging boxes, caught fire and emitted toxic gases, particularly carbon monoxide leading to instant deaths of the inmates.
There was only one narrow staircase leading to all the floors of the building, giving no space for the inmates to escape to safety.
The fire incident once again triggered a political debate over the thousands of decades-old buildings located in various parts of Delhi where illegal commercial activities are being carried out right under the nose of government agencies.
Most of those died were poor laborers from northern state of Uttar Pradesh and eastern state of Bihar, who came to Delhi in search of a livelihood. The gory incident also opened up a pandora's box about the inhuman conditions in which these laborers work in small cubicles lacking proper ventilation and basic necessities.
The ill-fated building was cramped and dingy with no proper ventilation and no emergency escape routes. It was never cleared by any government agency as a commercial building allowing industrial activities.
【国际英语资讯:News Analysis: Fire claiming 43 deaths rings alarm bell for Delhis illegal industrial unit】相关文章:
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