Delhi building collapse: Victims out of hospital, what next?

As authorities indulge in a blame-game, survivors east Delhi building collapse, who have lost their loved ones and whatever meagre belongings they had, say that they have little to look forward to.

"Everyone is pointing a finger at each other. But, tell me, will any of this bring back my daughter to life?" asks Rameez, who lost his 8-year-old daughter in the incident.

Rameez, a contract labourer, said he had left for work early on that fateful day when the four-storey building, mainly housing migrant labourers from Bihar and West Bengal, came crashing. His wife, who managed to escape with minor injuries, was still in shock.

"We have nothing to look forward to anymore. The little we had now lies in the rubble that was once our home. Government has announced to give us money. But will that compensate for my daughter's life?" Rameez asks.

Rameez's daughter was among the 15 who were brought dead to Lal Bahadur Shastri hospital, where most of the injured had been admitted.

"Even after the probe, people will continue blaming each other. Only people who have lost their loved ones can feel the pain. I saw the bodies of my mother and brother being pulled out of the debris. I have lost my family. What more can I lose?", asked, Mohammad Siddique, 25, who was among the injured admitted at LBS.

"There were 39 patients who were brought to this hospital, out of which 15 were brought dead. Nine patients who required neuro surgical treatment have been transferred to Guru Teg Bahadur hospital," said R N Das, the doctor-in-charge at LBS hospital. Four of the bodies are yet to be identified.

"We now have 12 patients and all are in stable condition with just fractures and traumatic swelling and two patients have been operated upon. However, we are all prepared to receive more patients," said Das.

Anxious relatives continued to pour into the hospital and huddled in front of the list of survivors, scanning to find some familiar name while dreading to look at the photos of the dead.

Three-year-old Neetu, with layers of gauze around her head to stem the bleeding, was puzzled by all the fuss.

She frequently asked her weeping mother, Meera, where her "Baba" was.

"I was talking to a neighbour when the incident took place. Finding my daughter was a miracle, I searched for my husband by digging through the rubble with my bare hands, but couldn't find him. I don't even know if he is alive or dead. What do I tell her? When we get out of the hospital where do we go? What do we do?" Meera said choking.

These questions are plaguing the minds of many other survivors too.

As many as 60 families lived in the cramped apartments in the tenement.