Fire breaks out at Gaffar Market in Delhi's Karol Bagh; 22 units deployed

The fire reportedly originated in a ground-floor shop where mobile batteries were stored before spreading to all floors.

At least 22 fire service units were rushed to douse a major blaze that broke out at a shop in Delhi's Karol Bagh, the city's fire service department said on Friday morning.

The fire broke out at a shop in Puri Plaza, 13 Block, Chain Wali Gali of Karol Bagh's Gaffar Market. (HT correspondent)

The fire broke out at a shop in Puri Plaza, 13 Block, Chain Wali Gali, in Karol Bagh's Gaffar Market, a four-storey commercial building dealing in mobile accessories.

The fire reportedly originated in a ground-floor shop where mobile batteries were stored before spreading to all floors.

A PCR call reporting a fire in the building was received at Karol Bagh police station at 1:28 am, following which around 20–25 fire tenders, three CAT ambulances and two PCR vehicles responded to the incident.

The fire has since been brought under control. No casualties or injuries have been reported so far, while damage to property has been reported.

Possible cause of fire

While the exact cause is not yet known, overheating or overcharging of batteries appears to be a possible cause of the fire.

A report will be sought from the Fire Department and the Electrical Inspector to establish the exact cause.

The building will also be examined by a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team to determine whether any other combustible materials were present.

The MCD will also be asked to conduct a structural safety assessment and issue a certificate to rule out any risk to human life.

2 dead in Chawri building collapse

Two people died while several others were injured after a three-storey under-construction building collapsed in Old Delhi's Chawri Bazar on Thursday morning.

Two bodies were taken out from debris by the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) team, while four were rushed to hospital by locals before the arrival of DFS team, Assistant Divisional Officer (ADO) Rajesh Shukla said.

The incident was reported at 9.50 am from Gali Sitara, near the Chawri Bazar Metro station.

Police arrested three contractors under Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The three were arrested from Sirohi village in Faridabad’s Dauj tehsil.

Deputy commissioner of police (central) Rohit Rajbir Singh identified the accused as Siraj, Tajuddin and Furkan, all residents of the Ajmeri Gate area. Their full names were not immediately available.