Major fire at Puri shopping complex, over 100 people rescued
Puri (PTI): A major fire broke out at a shopping complex in Odisha's Puri district, gutting almost all 40 shops, a police officer said.
The blaze was first spotted at a garment store on the first floor of Laxmi Market Complex on Grand Road around 9 pm on Wednesday, he said.
Twelve fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the flames.
Three people, who were stuck on the roof of the building, were rescued in an unconscious state by the firefighters, the officer said.
The building, which is located close to the centuries-old Jagannath temple, also houses a hotel and a bank on two separate floors. Around 106 tourists from Nashik in Maharashtra were safely rescued from the hotel.
SK Upadhyay, the director general of fire service, said three personnel engaged in the firefighting operations fell ill in the midst of the heat and the smoke, and had to be taken to the hospital.
He also stated that the flames spread to nearby buildings, "despite best attempts to bring the blaze under control".
Puri Sub-Collector Bhavataran Sahu said, "We are still unable to ascertain the cause of the fire."
According to the local police, an electrical short-circuit may have started the fire.
Meanwhile, Puri MLA Jayant Sarangi of the BJP claimed that the district administration has failed to ensure the installation of fire safety systems at the hotels and other establishments in the seaside town.
Odisha | A fire broke out at Laxmi Market Complex in Puri. Three people got injured and admitted to hospital. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. Fire tenders are present at the spot. Efforts underway to douse the fire: Gokul Ranjan Das, IIC Town Police Station, Puri pic.twitter.com/RJ12Xxb3nH
— ANI (@ANI) March 8, 2023
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Pawan Khera denied anticipatory bail in passport case: Cong stands up for senior member
New Delhi: The Congress party has stood by Pawan Khera, the Chairman of the party’s Media and Publicity Department, expressing confidence that regardless of hurdles like politics of threat and intimidation, justice would emerge victorious.
Khera was denied anticipatory bail by the Gauhati High Court on Friday in the case filed against him by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma for alleging that she possessed not only multiple passports but also undisclosed properties abroad.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has said in a post in Hindi on his ‘X’ account, “The entire Indian National Congress stands in solidarity with Pawan Khera, the Chairman of its Media and Publicity Department. The process to challenge the Gauhati High Court’s decision in the Supreme Court is underway.” In the post, which he put up on Friday, Ramesh has added, “We are confident that justice will prevail over the politics of threats, intimidation, and harassment.”
Bhuyan Sarma has lodged also an FIR seeking legal action against Pawan Khera for his allegations that she possesses passports of three countries and owns a company in the US, which had invested Rs. 50,000 crores. She has filed criminal cases against the Congress leader at the Guwahati Crime Branch Police Station under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
