Fire destroys goods worth Rs 70 lakh

A major fire broke out at Haryana Handloom Centre on the first floor of a three-storey complex on Kammanahalli Main Road, destroying goods worth more than Rs 70 lakh on Saturday afternoon.

However, no harm to life or injuries were reported, said B G Chengappa, Director, Fire and Emergency Services.

The fire call was made at 2:22 pm and 20 fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the blaze, after a two-and-a-half-hour operation. Though the exact cause of the accident is yet to be ascertained, short circuit is suspected to have triggered the fire.

A fire official told Deccan Herald that a shopkeeper in the area had complained of frequent voltage fluctuations since Saturday morning. He said this could have possibly led to a short circuit, triggering the massive fire.

A helper who lived in a one-room house on the third floor of the building said he was away when the blaze broke out.

When he returned after lunch, he said he saw thick plumes of smoke billowing from the burning building.

While the ground floor houses a paint showroom, a hardware store and an optical showroom, the second floor has one-room portions occupied mostly by people working in the complex.

One of the shopkeepers said that within minutes of the fire breaking out, all the occupants had rushed out of the building to safety.

Chengappa said firemen had successfully contained the blaze from spreading to the second and third floors of the building, though the hardware shop on the ground floor did suffer minor damage.

He said the rolling shutters of the handloom centre housed in six shops had expanded due to excessive heat and the firemen had to employ a crane to break open the shutters and the window grills to enter the building, he said.

While the building is owned by Manjunatha Reddy, the handloom centre is run by Darshan Lal.

Sources said Lal was not in town when the accident occurred and that he was expected to return on Sunday.