Fire claims lives of pregnant woman, daughter

Jaipur, May 4 (IANS) A paralysed pregnant woman and her two-year-old daughter were burnt alive when their thatched hut accidentally caught fire here Friday, police said.

Manju Devi, 25, was preparing tea on a stove when the fire broke out in the hut in the city's Shiprapath area around 7.30 a.m. Manju Devi and her daughter Laxmi died in the blaze, police said, adding that her husband was out for work at the time of mishap.

"There are about 50 thatched huts in this slum area. Four other huts were also reduced to ashes," a police official said.

"People first tried to douse the fire on their own, but it soon went out of control. It took fire tenders almost two hours to douse the fire," said the officer.

The state government has announced a compensation of Rs 300,000 to the next of kin of the victims.