HYDERABAD: Twenty-two-year-old Md Sajid had come to Hyderabad from his home in Jharkhand two weeks ago. In order to earn some money for his marriage due in February, he started working as a wage labourer on a construction site. He rented a kholi in Basavataraka Nagar within Film Nagar where he lived along with his three other friends, all migrant labourers like him.
Like every evening on Thursday, all four of them returned after a day’s work at a nearby construction site. It was time for dinner around 8:45 pm in the night. As the gas stove fueled by a local cylinder was lit, the cylinder exploded, said one of the victims, Mohd Nisar (32).
An uphill ride. Since the locality was situated on hilly grounds, locals did not waste time calling up the fire department. They pushed the door to the burning house open and rescued the four men. However, the fire had already got to their bodies. They stepped out wrapped in flames.
Sajid and Nisar have suffered 99 per cent burns, an extreme degree, which is known to have little or no chances of survival. Their friends Mohd Abdul (22), Mohd Iliyas (24) are being treated, along with them at the Osmania General Hospital, for 77 per cent burns.
The blast’s impact blew off the ceiling of their house partially, while a small portion of one of the walls collapsed injuring, E Swamy (16) and E Anil (13) in the neighbouring house.
Local police personals rushed to the spot and injured persons shifted to Osmania General Hospital(OGH). When contacted, Dr. Rafi, Resident Medical Officer(RMO) at OGH, said that the four injured persons are in critical condition and are being treated in the emergency wing of burns ward.
Sajid’s brother-in-law, Mohd Akbar said that Sajid was the sole breadwinner of his family in Jharkhand and had come all the way to Hyderabad just 15 days back to save enough money for his marriage due next year. Sajid’s family has been informed and is on the way to Hyderabad, he added.
E Thirupati, the neighbour whose two teenage sons got injured in the accident said, “We are a poor family and do not have any source of income to pay for medication for my children and rebuild our house. We request the government for ex-gratia.” Banjara Hills Inspector, Govinda Reddy said a gas leakage had caused the accident.