9 killed as blaze tears through building in Delhi's Vivek Vihar; short-circuit likely caused it

E-PaperSubscribeSubscribeEnjoy unlimited accessSubscribe Now! Get features like A blaze tore through a residential building in east Delhi’s Vivek Vihar early on Sunday, killing nine people from three families and critically injuring another, the latest in a series of major infernos in the Capital this year that have raised fresh questions over fire safety in residential buildings. An inside view of the residential building after a fire broke out, killing nine people at Vivek Vihar in New Delhi. (Hindustan Times)The fire is suspected to have started after a short-circuit in the outdoor unit of an air-conditioner on the second floor of the four-storey building in B block of Vivek Vihar. Delhi Fire Services officials said the short-circuit likely triggered an explosion, helping the flames spread rapidly and engulf the upper floors. Rescue personnel from DFS and the Delhi Police said several residents were trapped in by the building’s security set-up – a central-locking system that possibly kept the doors locked, a locked metal gate that cut off the terrace and iron grilles installed across the rear facade that prevented escape through balconies. Neighbours who dialled emergency services said some initial calls were redirected to the Uttar Pradesh Police Control Room, because Vivek Vihar lies close to the Delhi border. Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths and announced ₹2 lakh assistance for the families of those killed. The fire department said it received the first call at 3.47am and that tenders reached the spot around 4.10am. Neighbours and eyewitnesses said that the fire broke out around 3.30am. The fire was brought under control by 6.25am and was fully extinguished by 8am, said DFS officials. By then, nine bodies had been recovered from the building: Shikha Jain (45), a resident of the second floor; Arvind Jain (60) and Anita Jain (58), their son Nishank Jain (35), his wife Anchal Jain (33) and their one-year-old son, all of whom lived on the third floor; and Nitin Jain (50) and Shally Jain (48) and their son Samyak Jain (25), who lived on the fourth floor. The families are not related. Shikha Jain’s husband, Naveen, is critical with over 40% burns. Their two daughters survived by jumping onto mattresses laid out by locals. The building is spread over an 800 square yard plot, said officials aware of the matter. Each floor has two flats – one at the back and one at the front. Investigators said the fire originated in the rear flat on the second floor and gutted the vertically aligned units above it. Flats on the first floor and front-facing apartments were largely unaffected. The building was constructed around eight years ago, said residents. Officials aware of the matter said they were still to ascertain if all the building followed all by-laws. They ordered separate probes at the zonal and headquarters levels to check the width of the staircase, examine the installation of the grilles across four floors, and the number of units. Officials said the rear metal grille and the single narrow staircase severely hampered evacuation. As smoke and flames filled the stairwell, residents on the upper floors had little room to escape.Three of a family were found on the staircase near the terrace, five of another family were found inside their house on the third floor and a woman was found on the second floor inside her house. The three residents on the fourth floor tried to escape onto the terrace, but were blocked by a metal gate that they usually kept locked at night. Their bodies were later found on the staircase near the terrace entrance. The tragedy devastated relatives. Arvind’s nephew Sachin Jain (30), who also lives in Vivek Vihar, said the five who lived on the third floor had planned to travel to Manesar over the weekend, but cancelled after the toddler fell ill. “My cousin Deepak, Nishank’s younger brother, went to Manesar with his wife and two sons to celebrate the birthday of his five-year-old son. They lived in the same house and the whole family was supposed to go, but Nishank’s son fell sick, so they dropped the plan,” Sachin said. Relatives said Shikha was a homemaker. Arvind had retired from his business and his wife Anita was a homemaker. Their son Nishank was a chartered accountant. His wife Anchal was a manager at Punjab and Sindh Bank in Anand Vihar. Nitin and his son Samyak ran Indus Flavour restaurant at Cross River Mall in Shahdara, 3km from their house, as well as a paper business. Nitin’s wife Shally was a former Congress councillor. Ruchi Arora (52), who lives in the front-facing second floor flat, said she waited in her balcony for nearly an hour before firefighters rescued her family and her. “They had installed ladders and a lift, which they used to bring us down,” she said. Mayank Jain, a resident of the first floor rear flat, said he was asleep and his brother woke him. “People were calling us and ringing our doorbell around 4am. As we moved out, the fire had already reached our door. We managed to run downstairs through the stairs, as there was no other way. I saw two girls and a woman screaming for help from the second floor. They eventually jumped onto the mattresses that other neighbours had placed,” he said. He added that air-conditioners began exploding in succession as the flames spread. Namami Jha (17), who lives on the second floor in the adjoining building, said she was one of the people who made emergency calls, but added that the first set of calls were directed to the Uttar Pradesh Police control room. “We are at the border of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, so the calls were redirected. By the time the calls were connected, we put out mattresses and two girls jumped onto them from the second floor. Others were trying to throw water in buckets, but it was in vain,” she said. DFS assistant divisional officer Deepak Hooda said his team had to cut through the iron grille at the rear using gas-cutters to get into the flats. “It took some time, but we were able to save an elderly woman and two younger women from the second floor,” he said. Police said legal proceedings had been initiated and forensic teams had inspected the site. The fire is the latest in a string of major blazes in Delhi, renewing scrutiny of compliance with safety norms in residential and commercial buildings.The building which caught fire on Sunday is a few hundred metres away from the Vivek Vihar hospital where a major fire in 2024 killed seven babies. On March 18 this year, nine members of a family in Palam Vihar died due to a major fire at their house. Jignasa Sinha is a Principal Correspondent who's writes on Delhi crime, gender and labour. Ridhima Gupta is a health correspondent with Hindustan Times. She covers Delhi's hospitals, government policies and other health topics. She has a keen interest in covering stories with a particular focus on gender and children’s issues.Read More