Hyderabad: Ganesha pandal, vehicles gutted

Hyderabad: A massive fire broke out at a Ganesha mandap on morning of Wednesday at the Mytri-Nivas apartments in Malkajgiri in which 20 vehicles were gutted but no one was injured.

The mandap caught fire after a diya near the idol fell down and the carpet got lit, after which the fire spread across the pandal.

Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Mr Prasad, a resident of the apartment, said, “there are around 70 people living in 23 flats in this five-floored building. On Tuesday night, we conducted the puja at 8 pm and all of us dispersed at around 11:30 pm. The younger lot stayed at the pandal till 1.30 am before returning to the apartment. While it was expected that the watchman would stay at the pandal, because of the mosquito menace, he went to his room to sleep. The neighbours of the adjacent apartment noticed the fire and informed us.”

Fearing for their lives, residents of the apartment rushed out of their flats and called the fire control room. Fire officials, who received the call at around 2.30 am, arrived at the spot and doused the fire.

Malkajgiri station fire office, Mallesh, said, “As per preliminary investigations, the fire erupted due to a diya near the idol. The fire spread to the carpet and engulfed the sidewall made of cloth. As vehicles are parked in close vicinity to the pandal, and the fire was intense, four cars were gutted, one car severely burnt, besides 12 to 15 two-wheelers parked in the area being were completely destroyed.”

Malkajgiri inspector A Man Mohan, said, “organisers haven’t taken any permission from police. They didn’t intimate the police about the installation. Pledging ignorance of of procedures for installing a Ganesha pandal, residents are claiming it is for the first time they have installed one. We have booked a case against the organisers under section 279 IPC — Negligent as to endanger human life”.

The police official said organisers should arrange at least three volunteers at pandals at night time but there was only one at the time of the mishap.

There was also no water close to the pandal, he added.