Panic as many go missing after Delhi fire mishap, Kejriwal orders Rs 10 lakh ex gratia for deceased's kin

New Delhi: At least 24 women and 5 men are reported to be missing after a massive fire broke out in a four-story building near Mundka metro station in Delhi on Friday evening.

The report was provided by the civil defence team at the Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital where the bodies of the victims from Friday's inferno were shifted, while relatives of the missing persons kept arriving to locate their loved ones.

So far the tragic incident has claimed the lives of 27 people while the officials have hinted that the death toll is likely to rise with many reported to be injured.

Meanwhile, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today visited the fire incident site and said that the Delhi government has ordered a magisterial probe into the incident and the culprits will not be spared.

He also announced a compensation of ₹ 10 lakh each for the families of those who were killed. The injured will be given ₹ 50,000 each, he said.

The Prime Minister has said that ₹ 2 lakh each will be given to the families of those who lost their lives. The injured will be given ₹ 50,000, his office tweeted.

At least 50 people have been rescued from the building, police said adding that the ongoing search operation is likely to be completed in the next few hours. Meanwhile, 11 of the 12 people who were injured have been identified, officials said.

As per reports, the fire started on the first floor of the building, which houses the office of a CCTV camera and router manufacturing company, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer) Sameer Sharma has said.

The owners of the company -- Harish Goel and Varun Goel -- have been arrested, police said. Their father Amarnath Goel was among those who were killed in the fire. The owner of the building, which did not have safety clearance from the fire department, has been identified as Manish Lakra and he is on the run, police said.

A motivational speech event was being held on the second floor when the fire broke out. Many people were attending this programme. So most deaths took place on this floor, the preliminary probe has indicated.

According to fire department officials, information about the blaze was received around 4.40 pm following which 24 fire tenders were rushed to the spot.

The divisional officer of the fire department informed that there was only one staircase due to which, people could not escape the building.