CHENNAI: The Kurangani fire tragedy could have been averted if the state foresters had alerted the trekkers, actor-politician Kamal Haasan said after meeting the grieving families of Anu Vidhya and Nisha Tamizholi who succumbed to burn injuries.
The tragedy is an eye opener to those taking up treks and now they should ensure their safety. The fire had been raging for a week and officials should have monitored this, the Makkal Neethi Maiam founder told reporters after consoling the family members. Kamal had earlier tweeted wishing a speeding recovery and termed the accident as heart rending.
Meanwhile, the CPI(M), which had formed a fact finding team to look in to the issue, pleaded for Rs 25 lakh as compensation and government jobs for the families who lost their dear ones in the forest fire. In a statement on Saturday, CPI(M) state general secretary K Balakrishnan said that the state should also felicitate the local villagers who were instrumental in rescuing the fire victims.
It may be noted that so far 16 people who were part of a 36-member trekking team had died due to burn injuries and three continue to be in critical and are being treated at the Madurai Government Hospital. Of the 16 deceased 12 are women, who attended the event held as part of a Women's Day trek by the Chennai Trekking Club. The police had issued a look out notice for the CTC founder Peter Van Geit, a Belgian national settled in India. There is no sign of him yet.
