A total of 49 people were killed after a fire in an apartment building in Kuwait. Of the 49 people, 45 have been identified as Indian nationals who were working in the gulf state. A special plane form the Indian Air Force, carrying the mortal remains of the Indians, landed in India today.

The IAF plane has landed in Kerala and is now expected to depart for New Delhi. The mortal remains were being brought back home by the IAF and Kirti Vardhan Singh, the Minister of State for External Affairs.

Ahead of its landing, ambulances have been placed on standby at Cochin Airport. As per officials, 31 bodies were deplaned at Kochi and the remaining 14 have been flown out to Delhi.

As per the list of deceased released by Kuwaiti authorities, the maximum number of Indians belonged to Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Of the 45 Indians killed - 23 were from Kerala, seven from Tamil Nadu, two each from Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, and one each from Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh.

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Many of the victims of the fire worked for NBTC, one of the largest construction firms in the country. As per reports, the building - Al Mangaf - was also owned by NBTC.

A massive fire erupted in a six-storey building in Kuwait's Mangaf on Wednesday. The fire, which was caused due to an electrical short-circuit - killed 49 people and injured many.

Along with Indian nationals, the fire also impacted Pakistani, Egyptian, Nepali and Filipino nationals in the building.