Delhi LG visits Bhagirath Palace market where fire gutted over 100 shops

New Delhi, Nov 26: Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena on Saturday visited the Bhagirath Palace market in Chandni Chowk where firefighting operations continued for more than 38 hours after a huge fire erupted on Thursday night and destroyed over 100 shops.

Visiting the spot, the Delhi L-G said that hanging wires, overloaded circuits, and old buildings were prone to blazes and he constituted a multi-disciplinary committee to address these issues.

The Delhi L-G said in a Twitter post, "Visited the fire site at Bhagirath Palace, Chandni Chowk, where the cooling process is yet on. With hanging wires, overloaded circuits, old buildings, water shortage & narrow lanes, such areas are dangerously prone to blazes."

He also added, "Have constituted a multi disciplinary Committee to look into ways & means of effectively addressing these issues with active involvement of residents and other stakeholders, in areas like Chandni Chowk, Sadar Bazar, Pahar Ganj etc & submit a report within 30 days."

The fire which erupted on Thursday night has burnt over 100 shops. The fire tenders are still working to control the fire.

The fire broke out in a shop in Mahalaxmi Market and soon spread to the adjacent shops of electrical appliances, according to the fire department.

On Friday, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal also tweeted about the incident and said, "This incident of fire in Bhagirath Palace market of Chandni Chowk late last night is very sad. Since last night, the fire brigade personnel are working hard to douse the fire. I am constantly taking information about this from the district administration," he tweeted in Hindi.

Dr Harsh Vardhan, former health minister also visited the site early on Friday and said, "Efforts are being put in to douse the fire. Fire officials and Police are at the site. Fire has not been brought under control so far. Two floors have been damaged. No casualty has been reported. The reason for the fire is not known yet."