Fire breaks out at village in Noida. 2 children dead, around 150 shanties gutted

The fire broke out around 1 pm in the JJ cluster near Behlolpur village in Uttar Pradesh's Noida, under Phase 3 police station limits.

A major fire broke out in a village in Uttar Pradesh's Noida on Sunday, leaving two children dead and destroying around 150 shanties, police said.

A man tries to douse fire at a slum area in Noida, a suburb of New Delhi, India, Sunday, April 11, 2021. Two children were killed and more than 150 huts of a slum inhabited mostly by ragpickers were gutted in a fire that broke out Sunday afternoon. (AP Photo / Altaf Qadri)

The fire broke out around 1 pm in the JJ cluster near Behlolpur village under Phase 3 police station limits, according to officials.

"Around a dozen fire tenders were deployed at the sight to control the blaze. The fire has been controlled now but due to wind there is still smoke left," Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central Noida, Harish Chander said.

"Around 150 shanties got destroyed in the fire and the bodies of two children have been recovered. The exact cause of the fire is being ascertained," he said.

Police and fire safety officials were at the spot overseeing the operation, he added. Other details were awaited.