Bhubaneswar, Aug. 11: Child Line, which has been assigned by the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Khurda, to probe the death of a minor maid Tanu Das alias Khushi, today visited the house of businessman and hotelier Satpal Singh as part of its investigation.

Tanu died, along with four family members of the Singh family, in a fire on August 3.

Though the security guard deployed at the house initially denied entry to the two-member team of the Child Line, they later met members of the family. During the investigation, the team gathered information about the remuneration paid to the minor girl, the circumstances in which she was employed, the tenure and nature of her work with the family.

"The owner of the house, Satpal Singh, assured us full cooperation in the investigation. The owner, however, claimed that his son and daughter-in-law who died in the fire mishap, had employed the girl and they don't have any information related to her exact age and the remuneration paid to her," said CWC member, Benudhar Senapati. The CWC is the authority that deals with matters concerning children in need of protection and care.

The CWC, however, said the age of the deceased is yet to be ascertained. "While her family members claim the girl was 16 years old, there is no official document to substantiate it. As the deceased had never joined any school it is not possible to get any document to ascertain her age," added Senapati. He also said that the Child Line would submit its final report on Saturday.

CWC members said they would ask the Singh family to compensate the family members of the deceased. "The girl belonged to a very poor family and her father is a cobbler by profession. So, we will ask the Singh family to give compensation," said a CWC member.

Earlier, a non-governmental organisation - Happy Bliss Foundation -stepped in and admitted the three siblings of Tanu to school. Her 10-year-old sister and six-year-old brother were admitted to the Station Bazaar UG UP School, and another sister aged of three was enrolled at an anganwadi. The organisation has assured the family that they would take care of the children.