RANCHI: The Jharkhand government has ordered an immediate, state-wide safety audit of all bars, restaurants, hotels and hospitals, directing district administrations to submit their reports within a week.
The decision comes in the wake of the horrific fire at a restaurant-cum-nightclub in Goa’s Arpora on Saturday night, which claimed 25 lives, including three youths from Jharkhand who had recently migrated there for work.
The victims have been identified as 24-year-old Pradeep Mahato and 22-year-old Vinod Mahato, both residents of Fatehpur village in Ranchi’s Lapung block, and 22-year-old Mohit Munda from Govindpur village under Karra block of Khunti district.
All three were employed as cooks in the nightclub and were present inside the kitchen when the blaze erupted.
According to Health and Disaster Management Minister Irfan Ansari, the government would deal firmly with any lapse related to public safety. “If an incident like the one in Goa happens in Jharkhand, officials will be held accountable,” he warned.
Ansari stressed that all commercial establishments must adhere to strict kitchen safety norms, carry out routine technical checks of gas pipelines, burners and chimneys and ensure that fire-safety equipment and emergency exits remain operational at all times.
Meanwhile, the mortal remains of three migrant workers from Jharkhand were brought to Ranchi on Monday morning.
Agriculture Minister Shilpy Neha Tirkey, who coordinated with the Goa government to bring back the bodies, informed that all three workers belonged to the Assembly constituency, Mandar.
“The bodies were sent to their native villages in special ambulances. I will request Chief Minister Hemant Soren for some welfare provisions for the families of the victims, said Tirkey.
The Labour Department has handed Rs 50,000 each to the families of the victims as immediate assistance. State Migrant Control Room’s team lead Shikha Lakra, who received the bodies at the airport, said that the Labour Department has ensured that two of the family members of the victims who are still stranded in Goa are brought back to Ranchi by a flight by the evening.
