18 children killed in fire accident in Gujarat

The top floor of Takshila Complex, located in Sarthana area of Surat, caught fire

surat-fire-incident ANI via Twitter

At least 18 students lost their lives and several others sustained injuries after fire broke out in a commercial complex in Surat on Friday evening.

The top floor of Takshila Complex, located in Sarthana area of Surat, caught fire, according to preliminary reports.

The students were attending coaching classes for NATA. Unconfirmed reports indicate that there was a three to four feet wooden staircase to reach the tuition centre.

The gory videos of students jumping to “safety” went viral.

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani announced an assistance of Rs 4 lakh to the kin of those who lost their lives. He has left for Surat.

Principal secretary (urban development) Mukesh Puri has been asked to look into the incident and submit a report in three days.

The Surat Municipal Corporation had recently issued notices to complexes that had inadequate fire safety equipment or did not have them at all.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has tweeted, expressing anguish over the incident.

Surat Police Commissioner Satish Sharma said more than 15 bodies have recovered. The deceased are yet to be identified.

Meanwhile, the condition of a few people who jumped from the building is serious.

The fire has been doused. 

In the wake of the incident, a decision was taken to ensure that tuition classes held in premises without proper safety measures will not allowed to function in Ganshinagar and Rajkot.

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