Owner of Narela footwear factory booked after fire kills 2, injures 18

New Delhi [India], November 1 (ANI): Delhi Police Tuesday registered a case under sections of the Indian Penal Code against the owner of a footwear factory in Narela following a fire incident on Tuesday that left 2 dead and 18 injured.
The owner of the footwear factory is identified as Sahil Garg (30), a resident of Pitampura.
A massive fire broke out Tuesday morning in the footwear factory in the national capital’s Narela leaving 18 injured and 2 dead, officials said, adding that it was later doused.
The injured persons have been shifted to the Ram Manohar Lohia and Safdarjung hospitals and are undergoing treatment.
“Today around 9.41 am, a PCR call was received that a fire broke out on the second floor of a footwear factory in E block of Narela Industrial Area. Immediately a team was pressed to the incident spot. A total of 20 people were rescued out of which 18 are undergoing treatment, and 2 have died,” DCP Outer North Delhi Devesh Kumar Mahla told ANI.
“We received a PCR call at around 9.35 am, about the incident. Immediately 15 fire tenders were pressed into service. There was raw material and chemicals in the factory, due to which the fire spread,” Sandeep Duggal, DO Delhi Fire Department told ANI.
Quoting a contractor working in the factory, Duggal said that there were 300 people in this factory who came out on their own, and neighbours had put up ladders, helping people to evacuate the building.
A minor boy, searching for her mother, told ANI that his mother, namely Afsana, who used to work in the footwear factory, is missing. “The police tried to get rid of me when I asked them about my mother. My father working in a factory nearby is also searching for her,” a minor boy said in a broken voice.
A worker in the factory, namely Ritesh Kumar said, “I reached the factory a little late. After seeing smoke billowing out I called my companion, and he said that his hands and feet have been burnt.”
“Around 16-17 persons used to work on the floor, where the fire occurred. It was learned that there was an explosion in which my partner was also injured,” Ritesh told ANI.
Another worker Geeta said, “Today I had got a fever, due to which I did not come today. I do packing work, I reached the spot immediately as someone informed me about the incident. I am also working on the same floor where the fire took place.”
Security guard Sajjan Singh said that a drum exploded on the second floor of the factory, and after that the fire spread all the way up and down, around 17-18 people work on that floor, and they came out of the building with difficulty after a while. “Sahil Garg is the owner of the factory. He stays here when the work is going on,” he added.
Notably, a machine inside the factory exploded due to which the fire took place.
“The FIR is registered under 287/337/304/34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The owner of the factory Sahil Garg is absconding from the police. We have constituted teams to arrest him,” officials said.
The police are investigating the matter. Further information is awaited. (ANI)