Fire breaks out in education ministry office; ‘very fishy’, says Congress
A fire broke out on the second floor of the Ministry of Education office located in the School of Planning and Architecture campus in central Delhi’s ITO area
The Congress on Monday expressed concern over the fire that broke out on the second floor of the Ministry of Education office in central Delhi, and said the development was “very fishy”.
The fire broke out on the second floor of the Ministry of Education office located in the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) campus in central Delhi’s ITO area, prompting an emergency response involving multiple fire tenders, ambulances and police personnel.
No casualties were reported but the extent of damage to documents or infrastructure is not clear.
Very fishy: Jairam Ramesh
Reacting to the incident, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said the news of a fire in the Education Ministry’s offices was very concerning.
“It is also very fishy,” Ramesh said on X. The fire comes even as the ministry continues to face immense flak over the CBSE evaluation fiasco, NEET-UG paper leak.
Also read: CBSE OSM row: Rahul slams re-evaluation process, says students pay for Board’s errors
The Delhi Fire Service received a call about the blaze around 9.37 am and rushed eight firefighting vehicles to the spot. The blaze has now been brought under control.
The cause of the fire has not yet been ascertained, officials said.
Call received at 9.37 am
Earlier, the Delhi Fire Service (DFS) stated that a call regarding the blaze was received at 9.37 am, following which eight fire tenders were rushed to the spot.
Firefighters launched an operation to contain the flames that had erupted in faculty rooms of the administrative block situated on the second floor of the SPA building.
Police said information about the incident was received at IP Estate police station and was immediately marked to a local police team, which rushed to the site.
Smoke, flames noticed in faculty rooms
Saurabh Sharma, who works as a Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS) employee at SPA, informed police that smoke and flames were noticed emanating from the faculty rooms of the administrative block, after which he made a PCR call.
Also read: CBSE breaks silence on OSM fiasco: ‘Monitoring security issues’
Apart from the fire tenders, three ambulances, two PCR vans, traffic police personnel and local police staff were deployed to assist in the emergency response and ensure public safety in and around the campus.
“The situation is under control and no active fire remains in the building,” a police officer said.
Authorities have launched an inquiry to ascertain the exact cause of the fire.
(With agency inputs)