North Kolkata fire kills 1

An early morning fire in north Kolkata gutted about half a dozen shops and killed one person on Saturday. The incident happened outside Teghoria Bazar in Baguiati at about 3 am,razing seven shops. A person,identified as Rabi Kundu,was charred to death in one of the shops. Five fire tenders brought the fire under control,which was doused in half-an-hour. The cause of fire and extent of damage is yet to be ascertained. “It was a small fire but the man died because the shop he was in was locked from outside,” said Gopal Bhattacharya,additional director general,Fire and Emergency Services. Asked about the cause of fire,he said,“It is yet to be ascertained. It may have been a short circuit but chances are also that someone from the labour class – during this time of the year,people of the labour class brew tea in the morning – accidentally started a fire. We are not ruling out that angle as well.”