Elderly man, his two granddaughters killed in fire at their home in MP

A 65-year-old man and his two minor granddaughters were charred to death after their hut caught fire in Madhya Pradesh’s Shivpuri district, police said on Sunday.

The incident took place at 11.30 pm on Saturday in Laxmipura village under Bairad police station limits, an official said.

Prima facie, it is suspected the house caught fire from an ‘angithi’ (stove) lit for protection from the cold weather, Bairad police station in-charge Vikas Yadav said.

After getting information about the incident, police and fire personnel reached the spot and controlled the blaze, he said.

Hajari Banjara (65) and his granddaughter Sandhya (10) died on the spot, while his other grandchild Anushka (5) succumbed to burn injuries on the way to the hospital, the official said.

Bairad tehsildar Dragpal Singh Vaish said a financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh for each of the deceased has been approved in addition to other assistance to the family for the last rites of the victims.