Three more persons were on Saturday feared dead as rescue workers scrambled to extricate people trapped from the rubble of the factory building that collapsed here on Sunday, with the toll in the mishap climbing to 19.
"We have pulled out 19 dead bodies from the debris while sixty-two people have been rescued so far. While some of the survivors have been discharged others are still admitted at the Sadar Hospital and the Devi Talab Trust Hospital," District Magistrate Priyank Bharti said.
"We will continue with rescue and relief work until we pull out the last body. We don't want to endanger the life of any survivor trapped beneath the rubble though we doubt if anyone is still alive," he said.
A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) official said they were still trying to pull out the three bodies but their death was yet to be confirmed. Fifty-per cent of the rubble has been cleared so far but it will require a few more days, he added.
The three-storey factory building collapsed at around midnight on Sunday in Focal Point area here. A local court had extended the police remand of the factory owner, Sheetal Vij for four more days on April 19.
A case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder has been registered against the factory owner, who was arrested on Monday.
The state government has announced a compensation of Rs two 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.