Headlines
Rs.10 lakh ex-gratia for Bengal woman killed in Makkah
Kolkata, Sep 12
West Bengal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee on Saturday announced Rs.10 lakh as compensation to the
family of Muniza Ahamed of the state who was among the 107 killed in the
crane accident at the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia's Makkah city.
According
to the West Bengal State Haj Committee, Haj pilgrim Muniza Ahamed (59)
from Asansol in Burdwan district was among those killed and Liakat
Hossain (61) from Patharghata in West Midnapore district and Hasen Ali
(62) from Kaliachak in Malda district were among the injured in the
accident in which 107 people were killed and 238 injured.
Besides Muniza, another person, a resident of Kerala, was among those killed while a total of 15 Indians are among the injured.
"Though
monetary compensation cannot be a substitute for life lost, still we
are trying our best to provide all support and co-operation to the
distressed families. All Haj pilgrims from the state have an insurance
cover of Rs.3 lakh.
"Our government will give Rs.10 lakh as
financial assistance to the family of the deceased and Rs.1 lakh to each
of the injured pilgrims," said Banerjee.
The state government has also set up a round-the-clock control room with a toll-free helpline -18003457155.
"Full co-operation will be provided from our side to all those who need assistance in this situation," she added.
State Haj Committee member Mukhtar Ali said arrangements were being made to bring Muniza's body back at the earliest.