Bawana Fire: Trade Union demands adequate compensation for victims

The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) on Sunday demanded adequate compensation for victims of the Bawana fire incident, in which 17 people were killed and two injured.

The fire broke out in a firecracker storage unit in outer Delhi's Bawana industrial area last evening.

"The CITU demands adequate compensation for the families of the deceased and to those hurt in this horrible incident," the trade body said in a statement.

It said that an independent and time-bound inquiry should also be conducted, covering not only the causes of the fire and the safety measures in the unit, but also the role of the labour department and its officials.

The responsibility of the officials concerned must be fixed and those responsible should be booked for culpable homicide, the CITU said.

The trade union alleged that there was no mechanism to ensure the implementation of basic labour legislations, including ensuring safety at work, in the comparatively new industrial area.

The CITU also expressed concern over whether the victims were covered under Employees' State Insurance (ESI) or not.

"In similar incidents in Agra, Faridabad, Delhi and other places, the experience is that names of most of the victims were not on the rolls," it claimed.

The CITU said that the responsibility of the Centre and the Delhi government and its labour department cannot be underplayed in such incidents.