New Delhi: On Wednesday morning, Shrutika Baranwal (26) was on a call with a friend, excitedly telling him that her induction at her workplace in Saket would be over in a few hours after which she would head out to meet a few friends. As she packed her belongings and headed towards the room’s door to leave for work, she screamed for help.
“All Aman could hear was ‘help, help, fire’ after which the call got disconnected,” said Bhaskar Dubey, Baranwal’s and Aman’s college friend.
Dubey, who was in Hyderabad, immediately called Delhi’s emergency helplines. Minutes later, police informed him that a fire had broken out at the hotel where Baranwal was staying, but her whereabouts were unknown. “I called all our friends and seniors from Delhi and informed her parents. Everyone rushed to hospital hours later, we learnt that Shrutika’s body was at the AIIMS mortuary,” said Dubey.
Baranwal was among the 21 people who died after a fire engulfed Flourish Stays, a Bed and Breakfast (B&B) in Hauz Rani, Wednesday morning. According to Delhi Police, 58 people were rescued from the building. Police have arrested the property’s owner, Lovkesh Bajaj, and are searching for Jay Mishra, the account manager in whose name the B&B licence was issued.
“Shrutika was about to check out Wednesday. She had moved into the hotel two days back and had paid Rs. 2500 for a day. We thought that since they were charging that much, it would be a good hotel but they gave her a room for in the basement. I shared the same information with the police,” said Dubey.
On Wednesday, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) Mumbai shared a social media post, grieving the loss of Baranwal. Hailing from Jharkhand, she completed a Bachelor’s degree in Zoology before getting a Master’s in Water Policy and Governance from TISS.
At TISS, Baranwal focussed on groundwater issues and closely worked with the initiative Megh Pyne Abhiyaan. Remembering her, professor Pranjal Deekshit told The Print that Baranwal was an extremely engaged student. “She was full of life and had worked very hard to get placed at a good organisation,” Deekshit said. Choking on his words, Baranwal’s professor said that they had met on her last day when she expressed her excitement about her new job and was looking forward to returning to Mumbai for her convocation.
“When we heard the news in the morning, we went searching for AIIMS and Safdarjung. In the afternoon we found out that she was at Max Hospital,” Lalit Singh, assistant general manager of Rubber, Chemical & Polymer Skill Development Council (RCPSDC), told The Print.
Recalling her warm spirit, Maj Gen Rajesh Moghe (Retd), chief experience officer of RCPSDC, said Shrutika was one of the firm’s youngest employees. “She was an effervescent and enthusiastic person. She really knew how to talk to people, and she stood out with her positive demeanor.”
(Edited by Prakhar Agrawal)
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