The fire tragedy at a Rajkot gaming arcade, which resulted in the death of 28 people, including 9 children, on Saturday has raised questions about the safety protocol in place. According to an IANS report, an investigation has revealed that the incident happened due to its management's negligence. The game zone had reportedly been operating illegally for four years in a residential area without the necessary No Objection Certificate (NOC).
The arcade was set up in a flimsy-shed-like structure to bypass regulatory approvals, IANS quoted sources as saying. They further said the facility continued to attract visitors, who were oblivious to the dangers.
According to an NDTV report, on Saturday, the gaming zone, called TRP, was packed with visitors due to a special weekend discount offer in which the tickets were priced at Rs 99. When the blaze eruoted, the structure collapsed.
It is suspected that the fire could have started due to a short circuit, but the exact cause is yet to be ascertained.
At least 2,000 litres of petrol were stored on-site, and welding activities were going on without a proper fire NOC, the IANS report said. The game zone also featured rubber and resin flooring, Polystyrene (thermocol) sheet partitions, and over a thousand tyres around the car zone, creating a highly flammable environment.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to look into the incident held a meeting with the local administration in Gujarat's Rajkot city in the early hours of Sunday regarding the fire. Earlier reports said the bodies were charred beyond recognition, because of which the authorities have decided to collect DNA samples to identify the deceased.
The manager of the TRP Game Zone, Nitin Jain, and one of the partners in the facility, Yuvraj Singh Solanki, were detained late on Saturday. The game zone has three partners — Prakash Jain, Yuvraj Singh Solanki and Rahul Rathod, according to a News18 report.
In the wake of the fire tragedy, the state director general of police has issued instructions to the commissioners of police and superintendents of police to inspect all the game zones in Gujarat and close those running without fire safety permission, PTI reported.