Panaji (PTI): Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Sunday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the fire at a nightclub which claimed 25 lives.

Speaking to PTI, Sawant said an FIR has been lodged against the owner and the general manager of the nightclub and they would be arrested.

The fire broke out at Birch by Romeo Lane after midnight. The popular party venue at Arpora village, located around 25 km from the state capital Panaji, opened last year.

CM Sawant, in a post on X, said, "I am closely reviewing the situation arising from the tragic fire incident at Arpora, in which 25 people have lost their lives and six have been injured." 

"All six injured persons are in a stable condition and are receiving the best medical care. I have ordered a magisterial inquiry into the entire incident to identify the cause and fix responsibility," he said.

Speaking to PTI, Sawant said the police have registered an FIR against the owner and the general manager of the nightclub, and they would be arrested.

He said this is the first time that such an incident has happened in Goa. 

A preliminary inquiry has indicated that the fire started on the first floor of the club, and due to congestion and small doors, the customers could not move out, the CM said.

"Some of them rushed to the ground floor and got trapped there," he said.

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Kozhikode (PTI): Three members of a family, including a girl, drowned in a river at Nadapuram in this district on Saturday, police said.

The tragic incident occurred when the family had gone to Puliyavu river near Nadapuram, to wash their clothes.

The deceased were identified as Ansar (43), his wife Suhada (39), and Isa Mariyam (8), daughter of Ansar's brother--all residents of Puliyavu here.

According to preliminary information, the child accidentally slipped into deep waters and Ansar and his wife attempted to rescue her.

But all three were also pulled in by the current and drowned.

The couple's children alerted the locals, who initiated rescue efforts.

Though they were pulled out of the water, their lives could not be saved, police said.

The bodies were shifted to the nearby state-run hospital and further procedures are underway, they added.