At least 49 people were killed in Kuwait after a massive fire tore through a building housing scores of low-income migrant workers - most of whom come from India.

More than 50 others were injured in the fire that broke out in the 6-storey building in the coastal city of Mangaf in southern Kuwait on Wednesday.

The blaze erupted from the kitchen of one of the lower floors of the building at around 4.30am when most people were still sleeping. It swiftly reached the upper floors with smoke filling up the entire building.

Around 45 Indian nationals, aged between 20 to 50 years, were killed in the blaze. An Indian Air Force flight has since brought repatriated their bodies.

Three other victims are from the Philippines, while the remaining have yet to be identified. Most of the injured are also mostly from India.

Two-thirds of the Kuwaiti population comprises of foreign workers and the country depends on migrant labour, especially in the construction and domestic industries. Human rights groups have regularly raised concerns over their living conditions.

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