Delhi govt cancels fourth anniversary celebrations in view of hotel fire that killed 17

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal also announced Rs 5 Lakh compensation for those killed in hotel fire.

New Delhi: In the wake of the fire incident in Karol Bagh that killed 17 people, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has ordered cancellation of an event to mark the fourth anniversary celebration of the AAP government in Delhi on Tuesday. Bollywood singer-composer Vishal Dadlani was to perform during the event to be held at Talkatora Stadium. "The deputy chief minister has ordered cancellation of today's event owing to the Karol Bagh hotel fire incident," a senior government official said. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal also announced Rs 5 Lakh compensation for those killed in hotel fire. Massive fire swept through a four-floor hotel in central Delhi's Karol Bagh in the early hours of Tuesday, killing at least 17 guests, including a child and two people who jumped off the building in a desperate bid to save themselves, officials said. The blaze,in which 35 people were injured, started in the second floor of the Arpit Palace Hotel in the heart of the national capital around 3.30 am, trapping many guests who were deep in sleep. There were 53 people in the 45-room hotel, which had a canopy on the terrace housing what appeared to be a restaurant, officials said. A call about the fire was received at 4.35 am and 24 fire tenders were rushed to the spot, a senior Delhi Fire Service official said.