RAJKOT: Members of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) held a meeting with local administration in Gujarat’s Rajkot city in the wee hours of Sunday in connection with the fire at a game zone fire here that left 27 people dead and three injured.
The bodies were charred beyond recognition. The DNA samples of the bodies have been collected for identification of the deceased, they said.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Sunday morning visited the incident site at Nana-Mava road and a hospital where the injured were admitted.
The owner and manager of the game zone have been arrested, officials said.
Four children under the age of 12 were among the 27 people killed in the massive fire that swept through a game zone teeming with people enjoying a summer vacation outing on Saturday evening, as per the officials.
The five-member SIT formed by the state government, to conduct a probe into the incident and submit a report within 72 hours, reached Rajkot on Saturday night and held a meeting with the local administration.
Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi also reached Rajkot on Saturday night and attended the meeting.
“The prime minister has sought the information from the chief minister and has expressed grief. The PM has directed that strong action be taken against the culprits,” he said.
Additional Director General of Police Subhash Trivedi, who heads the SIT, told reporters on Saturday night that an inquiry would begin immediately to find out those responsible for it and ensure no such incident is repeated.
“We will go through all the aspects of the incident and investigate them thoroughly…We will work with commitment and complete honesty and integrity to provide justice to the children who have lost their lives,” Trivedi said.
Additional Commissioner of Police (ACP) Vinayak Patel said 27 bodies were recovered from the incident site and taken to the city civil hospital.
Three persons were injured in the incident and their health condition was stable, he said.
“The bodies are charred beyond recognition, and we have completed the process of collecting the DNA samples of the bodies and the relatives who have claimed them so that the identity of the deceased can be established. The death toll is not likely to rise any further,” he said.