Vile Parle Fire: Two-Year-Old & Caretaker Suffocated To Death In High-Rise Developed By Grandfather; Investigation Narrows Down To Two Potential Causes

Mumbai: A two-year-old child and his caretaker lost their lives to a severe fire in a Vile Parle high-rise building, which was developed by the child’s grandfather, who, along with seven others, survived the fire with minor injuries. The caretaker also suffocated to death inside a packed bathroom while trying to save the child and herself from the flames.

Fire Breaks Out On 11th Floor

The incident happened on Tuesday at around 10pm on the top floor of Shanta Bhuvan Co-operative Housing Society, a ground-plus-11-storey building located on Baptista Road near St. Xavier’s School. According to fire officials, the fire broke out in the living room of flat no. 1102 when five people were inside the three-bed residence. The Mumbai Fire Brigade declared a Level-I fire at 10.08pm, which escalated to Level-II at 10.16pm.

Grandfather Rescues Granddaughter, Attempts To Save Others

Hiren Batavia (64), the flat owner, is said to have been in the living room when the fire broke out, forcing him to grab his six-year-old granddaughter Maira and rescue her out of the residence. Eyewitnesses told The Free Press Journal that he tried reentering the flat to save his grandson Abir (2) and others but couldn’t step inside as the fire had engulfed the entire room, leaving him injured with minor burns.

Anikta Chhetri (23), the househelp and Abir’s caretaker, also rushed to the child in the bedroom but decided to take refuge in the bathroom as the fire had spread across the residence. Parth (32) – Abir’s uncle and Hiren’s son – was in the shower in another bedroom and did not realise about the mishap until he stepped out and experienced a heat wave. Eyewitnesses said that Abir’s parents were not inside the residence as they had stepped out for a post-dinner walk at the time of the incident.

The society’s security guard, Shivam Dwivedi (29), also suffered burn injuries while trying to help the family. Other neighbours and managing committee members, who attempted to help, had to rush to the terrace to save themselves from the fire which had engulfed the entire floor. Yashaswi Aggarwal (33) and her husband Abhishek, who lived in the adjacent flat 1101, were able to vacate the floor with their two children before the situation worsened. However, the couple were briefly admitted to the hospital for inhaling excessive smoke and were discharged shortly.

Caretaker, Child Found Dead Inside Bathroom

The first respondents were the society’s security guard Shivam Dwivedi (29) as well as the neighbours and managing committee members. However, all of them could not do much as the fire had slowly engulfed the entire floor, forcing them to rush on the terrace to save themselves. The fire brigade, police, electricity distribution company, ambulances and BMC ward staff were quickly mobilised for the rescue and firefighting operation.

A neighbour living in a nearby society, who requested anonymity, told The Free Press Journal that, “The flames were coming out of the windows and I saw one person calling for help by flashing light from the window. I ran upstairs to help but couldn’t bear the heat and had to step down to prevent the risk of burning myself."

The injured were rescued and shifted to nearby hospitals for treatment. Fireman Manoj Sonawane (30) sustained hand injuries while breaking a glass window to allow ventilation, while Dwivedi suffered suffocation. Both were treated and discharged from Cooper Hospital, officials said. Hiren and Parth were also admitted to the hospital and were reported to be in stable condition. The child’s funeral was held on Wednesday.

Investigation Narrows Down to Two Probable Causes

According to fire officials who were involved in the investigation on Wednesday to ascertain the cause of the incident, the blaze was confined to electrical wiring and installations, an AC unit, household articles, sofa, bed, false ceiling and the kitchen, spread across around 4,000 sq.ft.

One of the potential causes is believed to be an electrical short circuit in the AC unit above the living room’s TV, according to the severity of the fire in that spot. One of the family members, in his verbal statement to the fire department, claimed that the fire was caused by the househelp leaving the iron press on the clothes to attend to the child in the bedroom.

The fire was brought under control at around 1 am after nearly three hours of firefighting operations.

Deceased Child Was The Society Builder’s Grandson

Hiren Batavia is a well-known real estate developer who has developed multiple residential projects in and around Vile Parle’s Baptista Road. The society – Shanta Bhuvan CHS – where the mishap happened and his grandson lost his life, was also built by his company Labh Homes Creations. “He (Batavia) is a respectable developer and is known across the residents of Vile Parle due to his various residential projects. Such an incident happening at his home in the building constructed by him is very sad,” said another person living one lane away.

Child and Caretaker Suffocated Inside The Bathroom

According to fire officials, Chhetri and Abir were found unconscious inside the bathroom and were rushed to the hospital but were declared dead on arrival. A senior official noted that the duo were trapped inside the bathroom and inhaled excessive smoke due to lack of ventilation. “They might have thought that they would be able to use water to douse the fire if it entered the bathroom but they lost consciousness after the smoke filled up the bathroom. There wouldn’t have been any casualty if the caretaker had found a ventilated spot,” the official said.

One Survivor Found Ventilation, Flashed Torch To Signal Fire Team

A fire official said that Parth used a towel to save himself from the heat and flames, and rushed to the bedroom window, which provided him with natural ventilation. While the fire officials were trying to douse the fire and ascertain the number of people trapped inside the house, Parth flashed the torchlight on his phone which acted as a signal for the fire team. He was later rescued from the bedroom in a conscious state due to the ventilation but had suffered minor burns.

Dense Smoke, Dysfunctional Fire Fighting System Increased Challenges

A senior fire official said that the entire 11th floor was affected and dense smoke made it difficult for firefighters to enter the flats. Meanwhile, air velocity increased the intensity of the fire on the higher floor, which is open from all sides due to the lack of taller buildings. He added that although fire extinguishers were available in the buildings, the fire-safety systems were found to be non-working.

Published on: Thursday, August 13, 2026, 12:43 AM IST