No clarity yet on cause of fire, but probe rules out explosion
The Hindu
Agencies suspect blaze started somewhere in the hall and spread to other parts
Contrary to initial reports, a preliminary investigation into the cause of the fire in a flat at Devarachikkanahalli on Tuesday, in which two women were killed , indicates there was no explosion. “The damage in the flat seems to indicate there was no explosion. If it had occurred, a blast would have left more physical damage,” a senior official said.
Fire and Emergency Services personnel recovered two undamaged LPG cylinders from the kitchen, one empty and the other full. This ruled out a blast triggered by leaking LPG as well.
Senior Fire Services officials said a thorough technical investigation of the flat would be conducted on Thursday and there was no clarity yet on the cause of the fire.

Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat has rolled out digital mode of water bill generation and collection in 23 gram panchayats on a pilot basis for the first time in Karnataka. This is set to be extended to the remaining 200 panchayats shortly, according to the Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Narwade Vinayak Karbhari.

Microplastics, especially nylon fibres, are present in Chennai’s beach sediments in relatively low abundance, but low overall microplastic abundance does not necessarily imply low ecological risk. Even small particles can cause long-term ecological damage by affecting marine life, moving up the food chain, and eventually impacting human health through contaminated seafood.











