Anaj Mandi aftermath: Battle for survival begins for deceased's families

New Delhi: "The Anaj Mandi fire has left my family of nine with an uncertain future," said Mohammad Farooq, who lost his son Naushad in Anaj Mandi inferno.

The battle for the survival of the families, who lost their bread-butter earners in the blaze, has begun.

Farooq told Millennium Post, they have received monetary help from the government, still, their future is dark. "Naushad was my elder son. He was sending me Rs 5,000-7,000 per month through which the family was getting food. He left us in pain," said Farooq.

The money which the government has given him will end one day and after that, they have no idea how the family will going to survive, added Naushad.

Naushad's body was accompanied from Delhi to Samastipur (Bihar) by his relative Mohammad Isha.

"During the journey, I was thinking that the fire not only killed several people but also destroyed many families," said Isha.

He added that his other relative Mohammad Jojo also died in the incident. "Recently, Jojo's family was affected by flood and now his death left them shattered. He had two small kids, wife and parents. How they will survive. They require serious help," added Isha.

After travelling over 1,000 kilometres from Delhi, most of the bodies have reached Bihar in ambulances.

Meanwhile, after seeing the body of another deceased, Mohammad Sadre Alam, one of his family members fainted.

Most of these deceased started supporting their families at very young age. Few of them had also planned their sister's marriage but the inferno crushed their dreams.

Mohammad Kalam, the relative of deceased Abbas, thanked the Bihar government for transporting the body to his hometown in Sitamarhi.

"We have also got monetary help of Rs 2 lakh from the government. But still the future of the family is uncertain," said Kalam. He further said, Abbas was the only bread-butter earner in the family.

"Abbas started working when he was a kid. Later, he went to Delhi to earn for his family. He was regularly sending money to his family," said Kalam.

Zakir Hussain lost his brother Sakir in the deadly fire. He was heartbroken after the death of his beloved brother.

"My brother is survived by three little children. We are now thinking about our dark future. Sakir went to Delhi a few years ago and started working there," added Zakir.

Police investigation in the case had revealed serious negligence from the part of the building owner. The city police found that in the building there was no panic alarm, no fire fighting equipment.

The building where the incident took place was residential and it was not meant for running factories. There was also no escape route in the building.