Hyderabad (PTI): A fire broke out in a six-storey commercial building housing a large number of IT coaching centres and shops, at Ameerpet here on Friday.

No casualties were reported as authorities evacauted about 100 people using ladders and by staircase, police said.

The fire occurred at about 10.30 am following an electric short circuit in a duct in the ground floor of the building near a lift. The insulation material in it was burnt leading to heavy smoke billowing from the premises, they said.

Personnel from Telangana fire services department, police, Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) responded immediately and put out the blaze.

Ameerpet, a densely populated locality, is home to a large number of coaching centres offering software courses.

Last month, five persons, including two children and an elderly woman, died after a fire broke out in a four-storey furniture shop building at Nampally here.

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Kalaburagi (Karnataka) (PTI): A 27-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly killing a teacher after she repeatedly demanded repayment of a Rs 13 lakh loan that he had taken from her, police said on Wednesday.

The accused, Amar, allegedly attacked the woman with a sharp weapon and later set the body on fire on the Kamalapur-Kalmood road in the district in an attempt to destroy evidence, they said.

Police identified the victim as Jyoti (57), a resident of Kalaburagi city, who was working as a teacher in Bidar district.

The matter came to light after an unidentified female body was found beside the Kamalapur-Kalmood road, they said.

Initially, it was treated as an unidentified body. Based on a complaint from a local resident, a murder case was registered under 109 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at Kamalapur Police Station limits in Kalaburagi district, police said.

The investigation was immediately taken up and her photographs were widely circulated and later, the woman was identified.

During the investigation, police identified Amar, a resident of Kapnoor area, who owns and runs a milk parlour as the accused, Adduru Srinivasulu, Kalaburagi Superintendent of Police told reporters here.

According to him, Amar had borrowed Rs 13 lakh from Jyoti. She had been repeatedly asking him to return the money and had warned that she would lodge a police complaint if he failed to repay the amount. Fearing this, Amar allegedly planned to kill her.

He reportedly took Jyoti towards the Kamalapur-Kalmood road in a vehicle on April 4. On the way, he stopped the vehicle saying that water needed to be poured into the engine. "When she got down, he allegedly threw chilli powder on her face and attacked her with a sharp weapon. After the murder, he allegedly poured fuel on the body and set it on fire before fleeing the scene," the officer said.

Based on the accused's statement, police recorded his confession, collected evidence in the case, arrested him and produced him before a court, which remanded him to judicial custody, he added.