Guwahati: As many as 10 people were killed out of which nine of them were Indian nationals and several others were injured on Thursday when a fire engulfed crowded foreign workers’ housing in Male, the capital of the Maldives, according to the fire department as reported by national media.
The archipelago’s capital which is primarily known as a upmarket vacation spot, is one of the world’s densestly populated cities.
As per officials report, 10 victims were found on the top level of a structure that was completely destroyed in the fire, which originated from a ground-floor auto repair shop.
“We have found 10 bodies,” a fire service official said, adding that it took them about four hours to put out the fire.
According to a security officer, nine Indians and a Bangladeshi national were among the deceased.
Political parties in the Maldives have criticised the working conditions for foreigners.
They hail mainly from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and are estimated to make up approximately half of Male’s 250,000 inhabitants.
During the Covid-19 outbreak, when the infection spread three times more quickly among immigrant workers than it did among locals, their poor living conditions came to light.