Four die, seven injured in massive fire at hotel in Ajmer

Tragic fire at Ajmer hotel kills four, injures seven; rescue operation hampered by congested lanes.

Four persons, including a four-year-old child, died and seven others were injured in a massive fire which broke out at a hotel in a congested locality at Ajmer in Rajasthan on Thursday. Some of the people staying at the five-storey hotel jumped from the windows in a bid to save their lives.

The fire broke out at the ground floor of Hotel Naaz in Diggi Bazaar area, near the historic Ajmer Sharif Dargah, reportedly because of a short circuit in an air conditioner unit. While the fire engulfed the entire hotel building in a short time, the cramped lanes created difficulties for firefighters and hampered the rescue operation.

Two men, a woman and a child succumbed to their injuries, while the condition of four of the injured persons was stated to be critical. Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College Principal Anil Samaria said the patients undergoing treatment had 50% to 90% burn injuries.

The fire could be extinguished after about three hours and the search operation was called off in the afternoon after evacuating all the people from the hotel as well as the nearby shops and buildings. Plumes of thick black smoke emanating from the hotel in the densely populated area could be seen billowing into the sky from a distance.

Two persons jumped in panic from a window onto an adjacent building, while another man grabbed a rope, but fell to the ground. A woman saved the life of her three-year-old son by tossing him from a window to a man standing in the lane.

The hotel is frequented by the pilgrims visiting the 13th century dargah of Sufi mystic Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti. Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani, elected from Ajmer North constituency, has given instructions to the district administration to ensure proper treatment of those injured and launch an investigation into the mishap.

Governor Haribhau Bagde and Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma expressed condolences over the loss of lives and wished for a speedy recovery of those injured in the incident.