Bharatpur death toll rises to 24

Jaipur, May 11 (IANS) Two more people have died in the wall collapse in Bharatpur in Rajasthan, taking the death toll to 24, police said on Thursday.

The dead included eight women and four children, officials said.

Two of the 30 who were injured in the Wednesday night incident in Sewar area were in critical condition in a Jaipur hospital, Bharatpur District Collector Narendra Kumar Gupta told IANS over telephone.

While 22 people died instantly when the wall near which they had taken shelter collapsed due to a thunderstorm, two others died later in the night, police and district officials said.

Witnesses told IANS that the wall crashed due to the powerful storm that lashed parts of Rajasthan on Wednesday night.

The victims were having dinner when the tragedy took place.

"I was at the event. Some people gathered around the wall for protection from the wind," said a man who saw it happen. "Suddenly, the wall came down, trapping a lot of people."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister National Relief Fund to the next of kin of those killed in the incident.

The announcement said Rs 50,000 would be given to the seriously injured.

"The incident in Bharatpur has pained me beyond words. My thoughts are with the family of the deceased," Modi tweeted. "I hope the injured recover soon."