9 including children killed in Delhi residential building fire

At least nine people, including three girls, have died in a fire at a multi-storey residential building in the Palam area of India's capital, Delhi.

According to NDTV, citing the Delhi Fire Service, the fire broke out in the building early on Wednesday morning, March 18. Fire service personnel rescued ten people with severe burns and took them to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared six dead, including three children. Three more deaths were later confirmed among those admitted to other hospitals.

Locals reported that two people jumped from the building in panic to escape the fire and have been hospitalised.

The fire service received the call around 7:00 am and dispatched 30 fire tenders to the scene. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

Initial reports indicate a tin shed was on the roof of the five-storey building. The basement, ground floor and first floor were used as godowns for cloth and cosmetics, while residents lived on the second and third floors.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has expressed concern and ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident. In a post on social media platform X, she said she was deeply distressed by this tragic incident and that rescue operations are being monitored.