Jalandhar building collapse: Death toll reaches four

Racing against time, rescue workers scrambled to extricate people trapped in the rubble of the factory building which collapsed on Sunday in Jalandhar as the death toll rose to four on Tuesday.

"We have retrieved four bodies from the rubbles till now. While two bodies were brought out last night, rescue workers today extricated another two bodies," District Magistrate Priyank Bharti said.

Sixty people have been rescued from the site, he said, adding that several others are still feared to be trapped and efforts are on to rescue them.

"Of the sixty rescued, some were discharged last night after they were provided medical aid. Three persons among the the injured remains in a serious condition. Most of the workers of the factory were from Bihar and Jharkhand," he said.

The three-storey building collapsed at around midnight on Sunday in Focal Point area.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is scheduled to visit the site to oversee the rescue work. Badal had on Monday ordered a probe by a committee headed by Jalandhar divisional commissioner Anurag Verma.

Police had on Monday night arrested the factory owner and registered a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against her.

The state government has announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the kin of the deceased. It also announced a compensation of Rs 65,000 each to the seriously injured and Rs 45,000 each to injured persons.