A video grab has come up showing how the fire started at the gaming zone on Saturday in Gujarat’s Rajkot, that left 33 dead, including nine children.
The CCTV camera footage shows the massive fire at TRP Game Zone started from a welding spot.
In a 40-second video posted by news agency PTI, a massive fire can be seen burning as highly inflammable materials are kept around it. As the fire began, several people could be seen trying to take the inflammable materials away from the blaze.
Fuel, tyres, fibreglass shades, and thermocol sheet partitions—some of which were for go-carting at the gaming zone—were reportedly kept at the site, which led to an extremely combustible environment.
According to the police, the gaming zone did not have the required fire safety clearance from the city’s municipal corporation at the time of the incident.
While the gaming zone owners had submitted bills to the police for fire safety equipment and claimed to have installed such equipment on the premises, the process for obtaining the necessary fire NOC (No Objection Certificate) was underway but had not been completed, Rajkot commissioner of police (CP) Raju Bhargav said.
The police have arrested the gaming zone’s owner – Yuvraj Singh Solanki, and his manager – Nitin Jain, under various charges, including culpable homicide.
An FIR has also been registered against four other accused under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), and 114 (abettor present when offense is committed) of the Indian Penal Code.
The hunt to nab the four other accused was ongoing, the police said. Meanwhile, the process of identification of the victims is underway.
The state government has formed a five-member SIT to probe the incident. The team consists of commissioner of technical education, BN Pani, director of the forensic science laboratory in Gandhinagar, HP Sanghvi, chief fire officer in Ahmedabad, JN Khadia and superintending engineer of the roads and buildings department, MB Desai. The team is headed by additional director general of police, Subhash Trivedi.
On Sunday, the five-member team was asked to submit the preliminary report of the incident within three days during a meeting with the local administration in Rajkot.
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