Male, Nov 10 (IANS) At least 10 people, including nine Indians, were killed and several others injured when a fire swept through cramped lodgings of foreign workers in Male, the Maldivian fire service said.
Officials said 10 bodies were recovered from the upper floor of a building destroyed in the fire, which originated from a ground-floor vehicle repair garage, local media reported.
He added that it took them about four hours to put out the fire.
"We are deeply saddened by the tragic fire incident in Male which has caused loss of lives, including reportedly of Indian nationals. We are in close contact with the Maldivian authorities," the Indian High Commission in Male tweeted.
An evacuation centre has been set up in a nearby stadium, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) of Maldives said.
"NDMA has established an evacuation centre in Maafannu Stadium for those displaced and affected by the fire in Male. Arrangements are being made to provide relief assistance and support."
The Maldivian capital, best known as an upmarket tourist destination, is one of the world's most densely populated cities.
Foreign workers make up about half of Male's 250,000-strong population and are mostly from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Their poor living conditions of foreign workers was found out during the Covid-19 pandemic when the infection spread three times faster among foreign workers compared with locals.
Approximately 29,000 Indians live and work in the Maldives and almost 22,000 of them live in Male, the capital city.
They comprise nurses, teachers, managers, doctors, engineers, accountants and other professionals.
The UK Prime Minister was given a ceremonial reception and a Guard of Honour at Rashtrapati Bhawan where he was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Talking to the media after the ceremonial welcome, Johnson said that relations with India were never so strong.
In a notification issued this evening, the Health Department said: "A fine of Rs 500 for not wearing of face mask and cover in all public places in Delhi will be imposed from immediate effect till further orders in compliance of notification dated February 26, 2022."
During his recent visit to South Africa and interaction with the members of the Indian community there, Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra urged the community to register as overseas voters as the present numbers are abysmally low. He also shared with the members that extension of Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) facility to overseas voters is being contemplated.
Johnson started his visit to the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi by visiting Mahatma Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram where he spent nearly 30 minutes. He also tried his hand at spinning the 'Charkha'.
A 42-year-old Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader was shot dead in the national capital, an official said on Thursday. According to the official, the victim was identified as Jitender alias Jitu Choudhary, a resident of Mayur Vihar Phase 3.
The Punjab government would establish Total Mixed Ration (TMR) plant at Amritsar on the lines of two existing plants successfully operational in Ganganagar and Kolhapur, at an estimated outlay of Rs 80 crore, so as to overcome the problem of pollution and to provide cheaper feed to the dairy farmers, officials said.
