Death toll in Kolkata warehouse fire climbs to 16, West Bengal Govt announces compensation
The Hindu
Kolkata warehouse fire death toll rises to 16; West Bengal government announces ₹10 lakh compensation for victims' families.
The number of dead in the fire at a warehouse in Kolkata’s warehouse increased to 16 with the recovery of more bodies on Wednesday. A massive fire had broken out at a warehouse in the Nazirabad area of Anandapur in the early hours of January 26. Several workers were trapped inside the warehouse and the fire continued to rage for 36 hours till the afternoon of January 27.
Two warehouses located in the premises were gutted down in the fire, one was of a local decorator and another was a food chain. The police on Wednesday (January 28, 2026) arrested the owner of a warehouse Gangadhar Das and produced him in the Baruipur Subdistrict Court.
The bodies of the victims have been charred beyond recognition and in some cases DNA tests may be necessary to ascertain the identity of the victims. Three of the deceased were from the fast-food chain and remaining from the decorator firm. Almost three days after the fire, the fast-food chain Wow Momo came out with a statement saying that the company was grieving the loss of three valued employees. According to the statement, the fire emerged from the neighbouring premises reportedly started due to unauthorised cooking of the warehouse.
Senior officials of West Bengal Fire Department have also pointed out that there were no fire license and no fire safety arrangements at the warehouse. Questions have also been raised as to how warehouse could operate in the ecologically sensitive area of East Kolkata Wetlands, which is also Ramsar Site.
Kolkata Municipal Corporation Mayor and Minister in West Bengal government Firhad Hakim had visited the warehouses that were gutted in fire and announced a compensation of ₹10 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased. Most of the deceased were workers who hailed from the districts and had come to work in these warehouses. The family members of the deceased have lodged missing complaints and have been running from pillar to post in search of their loved ones.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during a public meeting at Singur on Wednesday (January 28, 2026) referred to the fire and said a compensation of ₹10 lakh has been announced for each victim’s family. “The decorators and Wow Momo are compensating them as well. I have asked the police to provide employment to one family member and recruit them as civic volunteers,” she added.
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