The special investigation team (SIT), formed to investigate the roles of officers of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation, the fire department, the police, and power utility firms, submitted its preliminary investigation in Gandhinagar. SIT Chief Subhash Trivedi, IPS, presented the preliminary report in the presence of Minister Harsh Sanghavi and Chief Secretary Raj Kumar, IAS.
SIT Chief said they had only 24 hours of preliminary investigation, and hence all aspects of the tragedy could not be covered in the preliminary report. The report does miss crucial information, such as the number of missing people. The preliminary report includes a diagram of the structure but fails to specify the area.
There is no mention of the time the police and fire brigade, as well as the paramedical team, took to reach the spot either. Most importantly, the preliminary report is silent on the issue of whether or not the electric connection from PGVCL ( Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited) was obtained legally or not.
Director General of Police Vikas Sahay, FSL Director Hitesh Sanghvi, Ahmedabad’s Chief Fire Officer JN Khadia, Technical Education Commissioner Banchha Nidhi Pani, as well as Superintendent Engineer from the Roads and Buildings Department, MB Desai, were also present at the meeting.
Also Read: Rajkot Fire Tragedy: Town Planning Officer Detained
