Eight of the nine people who died in the New Market hotel fire were Bangladeshi nationals. Among the victims were a journalist from the newspaper *Ajker Alo*, his wife, their three-year-old child, and his father-in-law, as well as a resident of Dhaka. The identities of the others have not yet been ascertained. Mohammad Khaled, the Deputy High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Kolkata, stated that six injured Bangladeshi nationals are currently out of danger.

Debashis Dutta, a journalist with the *Ajker Alo* newspaper, had brought his wife—who had been ill for a long time—to India for medical treatment, accompanied by his son and his father-in-law, Akram Ali. After undergoing treatment in Bangalore, they arrived in Kolkata and checked into the ill-fated ‘Shikha Inn’. Little did they know what danger awaited them; a fire suddenly broke out at the New Market hotel in the middle of the night. The rooms were instantly filled with smoke. Despite desperate attempts to escape, it was in vain; they died of suffocation Debashis Dutta, his wife Afsana Simmin, their 3-year-old son Swarnashis Dutta, and his father-in-law Akram Ali.

Ahmed Babu, a resident of Dhaka, has also died. The identities of the others are not yet known.

It is worth noting that the police rescued 80 people, one by one, from the ill-fated building in the early hours of the morning; many of them are Bangladeshi nationals. However, the cause of the fire remains unclear. Preliminary estimates suggest that an air conditioner (AC) explosion may have triggered the incident. A five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) has already been constituted to investigate the matter, and Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal has sought an immediate report regarding the fire safety audit.