India News | Fire in Kolkata Slum, Some Shanties Gutted

Kolkata, Dec 21 (PTI) A fire broke out in a slum in Kolkata on Saturday evening, gutting some shanties, an official said.

Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, upon visiting the site, said that no one was injured or trapped in the blaze.

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The blaze erupted in a slum near a private hospital in New Alipore area in the southwestern part of the metropolis around 6.50 pm, the Fire Brigade official said.

Army personnel from the New Alipore Army camp joined the Fire Brigade personnel to fight the flames.

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Sixteen fire tenders were pressed into service to control the blaze, which has been prevented from spreading further, the official added.

Hakim, also the state's Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Minister, said that the shanties were on railway land beside the New Alipore road overbridge across rail tracks connecting Sealdah with Budge Budge station.

He said that the cause of the fire will be investigated.

Hakim wondered why incidents of fire were occurring frequently in shanties.

On Friday, several shanties were gutted in a fire at Topsia in east Kolkata.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)