8 kids among 17 killed in fire near Hyderabad’s Charminar

A blaze triggered by a suspected short circuit in a building near the iconic Charminar in Hyderabad on Sunday killed 17 persons, including eight children, belonging to an extended family.

The fire broke out at a building in Gulzar House here, the police said. “All 17 who were shifted to hospitals were brought dead,” a senior police official said. A narrow staircase was the only escape route for the inmates of the building, but they could not rush out, another official said.

The building housed jewellery shops on the ground floor and people were residing in a flat above, the police said, adding as the smoke spread, people got suffocated. Union Minister G Kishan Reddy claimed that the fire department did not have enough equipment.

PM Narendra Modi announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured. “Deeply anguished by the loss of lives due to a fire tragedy in Hyderabad, Telangana. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May the injured recover soon,” he said in a post on X.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge spoke with Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and urged party workers to support the affected families.  Deputy CM Bhatti Vikramarka said the state government had announced Rs 5 lakh ex gratia each to the kin of the deceased.