Operations to douse the massive fire that broke out in Kanpur city's Basmandi area in the early hours of Friday and gutted readymade garment shops in five different shopping complexes is still underway, Uttar Pradesh police said on Saturday.
Kanpur Deputy Commissioner of Police Tej Swaroop said, "The fire is still on and efforts to control the blaze within a few hours." According to the police, the fire couldn't be controlled even 24 hours after the incident.
"The hydraulic fire machine of Allahabad district has also been put to the work of extinguishing the fire. Fire tenders of all the districts around Kanpur city are currently engaged in extinguishing the fire", the DCP added.
DCM assures help from the government for the businessmen affected by fire
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak assured all possible help from the government to the businessmen, whose shops were affected in the fire.
The deputy Chief Minister conducted an inspection of the situation on Friday.
Brajesh Pathak told reporters, "The important thing right now is to control the fire and ensure that no person is harmed. Our government stands with the businessmen in this hour. We will not leave them alone. The government assures all possible help to the businessmen."
Government to take stock of damages: DCM Brajesh Pathak
Informing about the situation, he said, "There is a lot of smoke since the fire has caught cloth material. Equipment is being sent inside to take out smoke. All efforts are in place to douse the fire." "As soon as the smoke reduces and the situation is under control, the government will take stock of the damages ," he added.
The Deputy CM said, "Kanpur Commissioner and Kanpur Police Commissioner together will submit a report to the government about the damage caused by the fire. After which, the reason behind the accident will be revealed." "There should be no politics on this," he further said.
About the fire incident
A fire broke out in the early hours of Friday at AR Tower near Hamraj Market in Bansmandi, of the city engulfed the AR Tower and spread to nearby buildings inside Masood Complex.
Deputy director of the UP Fire Department, Ajay Kumar told ANI, "Efforts are still being made to extinguish the fire, for which hydraulic fire tenders are being taken from Lucknow along with army vehicles and fire tenders have also been sought from the surrounding districts of the city".
"Around 3 am a fire broke out in Hamraj Market. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, but it is suspected that it may have been caused by a short circuit. An investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the incident," the official added.
Further details are awaited.
