Jayalalithaa demands Rs3 lakh compensation for victims

Opposition AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa today demanded a compensation of Rs three lakh to families of those killed in the fire mishap at a cracker shop in Pallipat area of Tiruvallur district.

"Families of those killed in the fire accident should be given Rs3 lakh from the Chief Minister's Relief fund," she said in a statement here.

Expressing grief over the tragedy, she alleged that the government had not followed rules while issuing licence to shop-keepers for selling crackers in the area. The state government should take precautionary measures, in future, to prevent such kind of mishaps, she said.

The toll in a devastating fire climbed to 32 with recovery of two more bodies from the site, even as the shop owner and another man were arrested in connection with the Diwali-eve mishap.

The blaze erupted at the cracker godown, which was a wholesale point of firecrackers, at around 7 pm last evening due to suspected short-circuit.