Major fire at Kolkata slum leaves hundreds homeless, blaze under control after 4hrs

A slum in north Kolkata'sBagbazar area was turned into ashes as a major fire broke outon Wednesday evening, leaving hundreds of people homeless,officials said.

Twenty-seven fire tenders took around four hours tocontrol the blaze that broke out around 6.55 pm in the HazariBustee on Kshirode Vidyavinode Avenue beside the BagbazarWomen's College near the Chitpore Lock Gate Bridge, they said.

Consecutive gas cylinder blasts in the shantiesfurther added to the blaze, which soon spread to adjacentbuildings, including the heritage Sarada Mayer Bari and agodown of books, officials said There were no reports of any casualty as most of thepeople were evacuated on time, they said.

''The entire Hazari Bustee has turned into ashes. Thesituation is now under control and cooling operations areunderway. The entire slum, as well as the neighbouringbuildings and residential houses, were evacuated on time,'' anofficer of the Kolkata Police said.

The office of Sarada Mayer Bari, the residence ofSarada Devi -- the wife of 19th century Hindu mysticRamakrishna, was severely damaged in the fire as policerescued four-five monks stuck inside, he said.

The exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertainedbut going by the evidence an electrical short circuit issuspected, a fire department official said.

''A probe into the mishap will soon be initiated,'' hesaid.

''Electricity supply in the entire area was snapped.

There are at least 40 families whose houses have been guttedin the fire. A godown of books is also gutted,'' the policeofficer said.

Locals alleged that firefighters reached the spot atleast an hour late, because of which the blaze went out ofcontrol.

A couple of police vehicles were vandalised, followingwhich a team of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) was deployed tocontrol the irate mob, the officer said.

State urban development minister Firhad Hakim visitedthe site at night and assured people to rebuild their houses.

''The fire is under control. Those who have lost theirhouses will be provided shelter at nearby community halls andalso at the Bagbazar Womens' College. We will also providethem with food. From tomorrow morning we will start clearingthe place. Once it's complete, we will try to build sheltersfor those who have lost their homes,'' said Hakim, who is alsothe chief of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation.

Disaster management teams of the Kolkata Police werealso deployed to tackle the blaze that threw traffic out ofgear during the evening rush hours.

Traffic movement on the Kshirode Vidyavinode Avenue aswell as the Chitpore Lock Gate Bridge, the lifeline of thepeople living in the northern fringes of the city, was totallystopped, leading to massive snarls in the north and centralKolkata.

A Kolkata Traffic Police officer said that movementvehicles will be allowed in the area only after a clearancefrom the fire department, and electricity is restored.