New Delhi Jan 22 PTI Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday expressed grief at the loss of lives in a building fire at Tardeo in Mumbai Modi also announced Rs 2 lakh each to the next of the kin of those who lost lives and Rs 50000 each to the injured At least six persons were killed and 23 others injured in the fire that broke out on the 19th floor of a residential building in Tardeo area this morning The blaze erupted around 7 am in Sachinam Heights building located opposite Bhatia Hospital at Gowalia Tank when many of its residents were still asleep an official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC saidIn a tweet quoting Modi the PMO said Saddened by the building fire at Tardeo in Mumbai Condolences to the bereaved families and prayers with the injured for the speedy recovery Expressing anguish at the tragedy Naidu said Distressed to learn about the loss of lives in a fire accident in Tardeo Mumbai My deepest condolences to the bereaved families My thoughts and prayers are with the injured PTI KR ZMN

Mumbai Jan 22 PTI At least six persons were killed and 23 others injured in a major fire that broke out on the 19th floor of a residential building in Tardeo area of central Mumbai on Saturday morning officials said The blaze erupted around 7 am in Sachinam Heights building a ground plus 20-storey structure located opposite Bhatia Hospital at Gowalia Tank when many of its residents were still asleep an official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC said Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident and announced on Twitter that ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh would be provided to the family members of each deceased from the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund PMNRF and added that the injured would be given Rs 50000 each Maharashtra Tourism Minister Aaditya Thackeray who visited the site said the government will provide a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the family members of each deceased He said prima facie the blaze was caused by a short-circuit Some residents of the building alleged that three nearby private hospitals refused to admit the injured persons and demanded deposit money and their negative COVID-19 certificates Senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis alleged that due to the denial of admission by these facilities the number of deceased went up Talking about the incident the civic official said The fire broke out on the 19th floor of the building On being alerted the fire brigade personnel and police rushed the spot Several persons were rescued of whom 29 were taken to different nearby hospitals as some of them had suffered injuries while others complained of health problems like suffocation Seven of the injured were taken to the BMC-run Nair Hospital where five died while one more succumbed to injuries at the civic-run Kasturba Hospital he said adding 17 injured were admitted to Bhatia Hospital where five were discharged following treatment while three of the 12 who are currently undergoing treatment there are in a critical condition One person was admitted to Masina Hospital and the patients condition is stable another one who was admitted to Wockhardt Hospital was discharged One more patient who was admitted to H N Reliance Hospital was also discharged the official said The BMC officials had initially said that the fire has claimed seven lives but later revised the number to six On being alerted 13 fire engines and seven water jetties were rushed to the building to douse the fire which was tagged as level-3 major The blaze was extinguished by 1220 pm he said There are at least six flats on each floor of the building Soon after the fire broke out on the 19th floor several residents ran out The blaze engulfed the floor and some occupants got trapped inside another official said He added that according to some residents the power supply of the building went off after the fire and many occupants were still asleep when the blaze erupted Prashant Gaikwad assistant municipal commissioner of the D-ward of the BMC said the building was given occupation certificate in 2015 In a tweet PM Modi said Saddened by the building fire at Tardeo in Mumbai Condolences to the bereaved families and prayers with the injured for the speedy recovery Aaditya Thackeray said The state government will provide a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to family members of those who lost their lives in this unfortunate fire There were reports about 2 hospitals refusing treatment however both hospitals informed me that they have admitted and treated some of those injured in this fire he tweeted He said he visited the affected building and also spoke to the residents whom he assured to provide complete assistance Talking to reporters Thackeray said short-circuit was the prima facie cause of the fire and the building has been evacuated after the incident In a social media post Fadnavis who is Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly said I am shocked and anguished to know nearby hospitals refused admissions to the injured persons which resulted into more deaths If it is true then BMC and State administration should fix the responsibility for these deaths and take action against those who are responsible for the deaths PTI DC ND MR NP NP