Fire breaks out at knitwear unit in Ludhiana, no casualty

The multi-storey building was closed due to lockdown and two labourers, residing in quarters situated at one side of the premises, came out safely

A major fire broke out at a knitwear unit, JP Knits, situated near Jalebi Chowk at Bahadurke Road here on Wednesday morning.

A firefighter trying to control the blaze at the knitwear factory on Bahadur Ke Road in Ludhiana on Wednesday. (Gurpreet Singh/HT)

However, no casualty was reported as the multi-storey building was closed due to lockdown and the two labourers, residing in labour quarters, situated at one side of the premises, came out safely. The flames were doused after a firefighting operation of over 12 hours.

According to information, the fire brigade received an alert around 5 am and 12 fire tenders from all the five fire stations in the city were rushed to the spot.

The reason behind the incident is still uncertain, but the owner, Gundeep Singh, suspected that a short circuit might have triggered the fire as, he said, an electricity transformer in the street had also caught fire on Tuesday night.

One of the labourers, residing in labour quarters, Arun, said that they were sleeping in the quarters when they came to know about the fire around 4:45 and that they informed the owner and the fire brigade immediately.

Gundeep said he had not yet ascertained the loss, but goods and machinery worth lakhs have perished. The building had also got damaged, he said.

Fire station officer Shristi Nath said, “A total of 12 fire tenders were deputed to douse the fire and the tenders were refilled with water over 100 times.”

Sub fire officer (SFO) Maninder Singh said, “Firefighting arrangements were in place at the factory and the operation lasted for over 12 hours.”