State minister Sujit Bose and BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul and others paid their last respects to Pattanayak at his residence in Dantan in Paschim Medinipur district.

Dwarikesh Pattanayak, 52, was among the 50 people who had died in the massive fire that broke out in a labour accommodation in Kuwait’s Mangaf, of which 46 were Indians.

“The state government will do everything required to help the bereaved family,” Bose told reporters after meeting the family.

BJP MLA Paul, meanwhile, demanded Rs 10 lakh compensation for the family and asked the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal to sponsor the education of Pattanayak’s teenage daughter “who is appearing for board exams next year”.

Paul criticised the state government for the lack of enough employment opportunities for the people of Bengal due to which they are forced to migrate to other states and countries for jobs with better pay.

“People from Bengal are going to Bihar, Kerala and Middle-East for employment and to work as labourers. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee should explain why people have to go outside to look for employment,” the BJP MLA added.

Among the 45 Indians killed, 23 were from Kerala, seven from Tamil Nadu, three each from Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, two from Odisha and one each from Bihar, Punjab, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Haryana.

An Indian Air Force plane carrying the bodies of the deceased Indians landed in Kochi on Friday from where the bodies of those from southern Indian states were given to authorities. Later, the plane continued to Delhi’s Palam airport with the remaining bodies of the fire tragedy victims.