Varanasi building crash: Kin of dead Malda workers get Rs 2 lakh

Malda: Families of two Malda labourers, killed in a building collapse in UP’s Varanasi on Monday, received a cheque of Rs 2 lakh each from the Bengal government on Wednesday. State transport minister Firhad Hakim also handed over compensation of Rs 50,000 each to the kin of four workers injured in the accident.
“I am here with a message from chief minister Mamata Banerjee. She always stands beside those who need help,” Hakim said, flanked by district officials and Trinamool Congress representatives.
Bodies of Aminul Momin (40) of Shersahi and Ebadul Momin (30) of Ranuchak reached here in the morning.They were employed by PSP Projects Ltd, along with some 200 others from Malda’s Kaliachak area, to build a temple in Kashi a fortnight ago. Late on Monday, the shed of a run-down building collapsed, killing Aminul and Ebadul while injuring others. CM Banerjee condoled the deaths and announced compensation soon thereafter.
Hakim, who landed at Farakka in a chopper on Wednesday morning, went to Shersahi by road. Handing over the cheques to the bereaved families at a madrassa, he promised the widows ASHA jobs. “We will also bear treatment costs for those injured and ensure they get work in Bengal,” he added.
The bodies, which were wrapped in plastic, had begun to rot when they reached Malda. “You all know the state of affairs in UP. We are fortunate that the bodies were not thrown into the river,” the minister said. He inaugurated a 45-bed Covid hospital in Sujapur before leaving for Kolkata.