Delhi CM Rekha Gupta hands over ex-gratia to affected families in Saidulajab, Malviya Nagar incidents

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday handed over ex-gratia assistance to the families of people who died in Malviya Nagar fire and the Saiduajab building collapse incidents, saying the government is taking concrete steps to prevent such tragedies in future.

Gupta also asserted that those responsible for the two incidents will not be spared under any circumstances.

Six persons, mostly medical students, died in May after a multi-storey building collapsed in South Delhi’s Saidulajab area. In the Malviya Nagar fire tragedy earlier this month, 23 persons, mostly foreigners, died after the fire engulfed a building where a restaurant and hotel ran.

After meeting the affected families, the chief minister said, “No assistance can make up for the loss of a loved one, but in this hour of grief, the Delhi government stands firmly with you like a family.”

She met them at the Delhi Secretariat and handed over ex-gratia assistance of Rs 10 lakh each, said a Delhi CMO statement.

“As a mother, a daughter and a public servant, I could deeply understand the pain and suffering being endured by the affected families,” Gupta said, and assured that those responsible for these tragedies would not be spared.

She also said that the government is taking concrete steps to ensure that such incidents do not recur in future.

The chief minister handed over ex-gratia assistance to the families of those who lost their lives in the Saidulajab building collapse, including Ramesh Chandra, father of the late Ekta Chaudhary; Ram Prakash, father of the deceased Ravi Prakash Verma; Rajesh Kumar, father of deceased Kapil; Sanjay Kumar, father of the deceased Nalin; Satyavan Verma, father of the deceased Alok; and Jai Raj Ojha, husband of the deceased Parvati Ojha, the CMO said.

आज दिल्ली सचिवालय में मालवीय नगर और सैदुलाजाब की दुखद घटनाओं में अपने प्रियजनों को खोने वाले परिवारों से मुलाकात कर उन्हें सहायता राशि प्रदान की तथा अपनी गहरी संवेदनाएँ व्यक्त कीं।

दुःख की इस घड़ी में दिल्ली सरकार प्रत्येक पीड़ित परिवार के साथ पूरी संवेदनशीलता और आत्मीयता के साथ… pic.twitter.com/L8oiddXBd6

— Rekha Gupta (@gupta_rekha) June 22, 2026

The chief minister also assisted the families affected by the Malviya Nagar tragedy. They included Saroj Devi, wife of the deceased Ashok Kumar Goyal; Sachin Agarwal, on behalf of the deceased Kamla Agarwal, Jawari Lal Agarwal; and Ramesh Prasad, on behalf of the deceased, Shrutika Barnwal, the statement said.

Family members who lost their loved ones in both incidents shared their grief with the chief minister in an emotional interaction.

The affected families also raised concerns related to administrative arrangements and emergency response systems, stressing the need for more effective and concrete measures to prevent such incidents in the future, added the statement.

The chief minister said that the government is not viewing these incidents merely as accidents but as lessons that must strengthen public safety in the future.

She said the Delhi government has already begun taking the necessary steps to prevent similar incidents and is working to further strengthen safety mechanisms.

In order to curb the rising number of fire incidents in the capital and ensure swift action during emergencies, the government is preparing a special fire safety plan, she said.

Under this initiative, the capacity of the Delhi Fire Services is being enhanced and smaller firefighting vehicles are being procured so that they can quickly reach narrow lanes and densely populated areas, she added.