Overview
- The blaze started in Younus Hosiery on Thursday morning and quickly spread to neighbouring first-floor shops before stores opened, which helped avert casualties.
- Firefighters from multiple stations deployed about 10 fire engines and roughly 70 personnel and brought the fire under control after several hours of operations and damping-down work.
- No injuries were reported but three to five shops were gutted and the Younus Hosiery owner estimated losses of about Rs 2 crore, with some property damage reported in a bank above the shop.
- Authorities say the cause remains unconfirmed and an official probe is under way while the shop owner has pointed to an electrical panel and recent disconnection of supply to some units as a possible factor.
- The incident renews local safety concerns because the complex sits metres from Gulzar Houz where a deadly fire occurred last year, and it is likely to prompt tighter inspections and scrutiny of electrical and fire-safety measures in the old city.