A devastating fire in a Delhi commercial building has claimed 15 lives, with British safety experts now being deployed to advise on prevention measures. The blaze, which broke out in the early hours of Wednesday, tore through a four-storey structure in the city's old quarter, a warren of narrow streets and ageing buildings. Victims included office workers and residents trapped behind barred windows and blocked exits. The death toll is expected to rise as firefighters continue to search the debris.
British teams from the Fire Service College in Moreton-in-Marsh and the London Fire Brigade are being dispatched under a new UK-India partnership aimed at improving building safety standards. The initiative follows months of diplomatic pressure from London after a series of similar tragedies. India's construction boom has outpaced safety regulations, leaving millions of workers and residents at risk. 'Every death is a preventable failure,' said Sarah Jenkins, Economy & Labour Reporter. 'The real cost falls on the families left behind and the low-paid workers who had no choice but to be in that building.'
Union leaders in the UK have long campaigned for better fire safety in high-rise and commercial buildings, pointing to the Grenfell Tower disaster as a cautionary tale. The Indian government has promised to implement new codes, but critics say enforcement remains weak. 'We need more than experts from abroad,' said a spokesperson for the Indian National Trade Union Congress. 'We need compulsory sprinklers, fire drills, and safe exits for every worker.'
The deployment of British experts is a rare step, reflecting the scale of the crisis. But for the families of those who died, it comes too late. As one relative put it: 'They were just working. They never came home.'
