The death toll in the Anandapur warehouse fire on the outskirts of Kolkata has climbed to 25. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of the incident and instructed the District Magistrate to provide an action taken report promptly. Following a complaint alleging human rights violations at the Wow Momo factory in Anandapur, the NHRC has intervened.
The complaint blamed the mishap on the company’s management’s negligence and regulatory failures by various departments. The NHRC emphasized violations of the Factories Act and Disaster Management Act. The allegations point to violations of the victims’ human rights, as per the NHRC communique.
Reports suggest that several individuals are still missing, raising concerns about the death toll potentially increasing. The Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly plans a protest rally in Anandapur. Initially denied permission, the rally was later approved by the Calcutta High Court with certain conditions.
The state fire services department and forensic team’s preliminary report indicated that the fire did not start at the Wow Momo factory but at the neighboring Pushpanjali decorator’s warehouse. Despite claims by the Pushpanjali warehouse owner, Gangadhar Das, the reports suggest a different origin of the fire.
