Fire in central Delhi building, no casualty

New Delhi, May 23 (IANS) A fire broke out in the Punjab National Bank building in central Delhi's Patel Chowk area Wednesday evening and fire fighters managed to douse it after an over two-hour effort, police said. There was no casualty.

A fire service official said the blaze was reported at 4.41 p.m. in the head office of the Punjab National Bank located near Akashvani Bhavan and Nirvachan Sadan. It was put out around 7 p.m.

There were over 250 people inside the four-storey building at the time of the incident.

"There was no casualty. One person was injured during the evacuation. There were more than 250 people inside the four-storey building," said a fire brigade official.

The exact cause of fire was not known but the official said they were inquiring if it started from an electrical spark.

"Around 25 fire tenders were rushed to the spot," said the official.

There were conflicting reports about where the fire broke out. Some people in the building claimed that the blaze started from the basement while others said it spread from the ground floor.

"I heard a blast near my cabin on the ground floor. When I, along with my colleagues, came out, fire had engulfed an air-conditioner," said Dipika, who works in the building.

Fire fighters, using ladders, evacuated all the people who climbed to the fourth floor of the building to get away from the smoke.