A week after, death toll climbs to 53

NEW DELHI: The death toll in the north-east Delhi violence rose to 53 on Thursday. Out of these deaths, 44 were reported from the Guru Tegh Bahadur (GTB) Hospital, five from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML), three from Lok Nayak (LNJP) and one at the Jag Pravesh Chandra. Apart from those killed, over 200 have sustained serious injuries due to gunshots, sharp-edged weapons, stone-pelting and even falls sustained from buildings during the violence. A total of 654 cases have been registered by the Delhi Police so far with several still missing. Most of the deceased fall in the age group of 20 years to 35 years.

The Delhi government has decided to enhance compensation for damaged residential units in riot-affected areas. The government has set up nine shelters for victims of violence and it will start distributing Rs 25,000 in cash to those whose houses have been burnt down in the violence. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had earlier announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for families of those who died in the communal violence.

The youngest casualty was 15-year-old Nitin Kumar, a Class VIII student at a government school in Gokulpuri.

The toll is expected to rise as more bodies are to be brought out of the drain that runs through north-east Delhi passing through many localities, including Gokulpuri and Bhajanpura.