Every time a policeman walked to the mortuary gate at Gandhi Hospital and called out a name, one could see the deep sorrow in the eyes of the co-villagers and relatives of the Bhoiguda fire accident victims.
“Who among you can identify Damodar come with me,” an officer shouted, and the calls continued till about a dozen acquaintances or co-workers were escorted to identify the victims who got charred in the accident.
As soon as news of the tragedy spread, workers from Bihar reached Hyderabad and assembled outside the mortuary where the bodies were kept for post-mortem. Police had informed them to be present there for identification of the bodies.
Preethi, wife of Damodar, is now worried about the future of her three school-going children. Damodar had been working at the Bhoiguda godown for the last three years and earning a monthly salary of ₹12,000.
Bilender Kumar, a welder at Balanagar, working here away from Bihar was for the good of his family. “Here, I earn ₹1,000 per day, and one can earn even more based on the type of work and expertise. And the families are taken care of. Back there, the conditions are bad,” he said, even as he questioned, “But, are we really safe?”
Nearly a 100 people who gathered at the hospital, included painters, carpenters, machine workers, masons, and tile and floor workers. While the identification process was elaborate, even as officials and leaders kept visiting the mortuary, a pall of gloom descended again for the last time in the day with the arrival of a pick up van.
It contained 11 coffin boxes – three in white and eight in black – for packing the mortal remains and transporting them on Thursday.
