Police on Tuesday evening arrested the owner of the factory and godown that was gutted in a devastating fire, killing eight people.
Gangadhar Das, owner of the momo manufacturing unit in South 24 Parganas district, was arrested from the Garia area of Kolkata, said a senior police official, and will be produced before a Baruipur court on Wednesday.
“Gangadhar Das has been arrested and will be produced before the court tomorrow. The investigation is continuing, and all angles are being examined,” the officer said.
The West Bengal government has announced an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh each for the families of those killed in the blaze, said Urban Development Minister, Firhad Hakim, adding that the compensation will be handed over to the families once bodies are identified via DNA testing, for which permission would be sought from a court today.
“The bodies that have been recovered are undergoing forensic examination and have not yet been identified. Missing persons complaints have been lodged. The families of the deceased will be provided ₹10 lakh each as financial assistance,” Hakim said.
The minister also visited the site of the fire and said strict action would be taken against those responsible for the incident.
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Earlier, an FIR was lodged against Das in connection with the fire that broke out late Sunday night at the factory and warehouse in Anandapur’s Nazirabad area, but Das had been evading arrest and his residence in Khejuri has remained locked since the incident, police said.
So far, eight people have died as a result of the fire, while around 13 people from Purba Medinipur district are still reported missing, they added.
The Anandapur unit, spread over nearly four bighas of land, reportedly employed 150 to 200 workers and stored large quantities of highly inflammable materials, including plastic flowers, wood, fabric and furniture.
Fire department officials later admitted that the unit had been operating without mandatory fire safety clearance. “There was no fire safety clearance issued for this unit,” a senior Fire and Emergency Services official said, adding that the presence of large amounts of combustible materials appears to have caused the fire to spread rapidly.
Investigations revealed that Das, a resident of Purba Chhara under Khejuri police station in Purba Medinipur district, had been associated with the decoration business for over four decades.
Meanwhile, administrative officials have visited the homes of the missing and assured families of all possible assistance.
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