Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): A massive fire broke out at the state secretariat, known as Vallabh Bhawan, in Bhopal on Saturday morning.
The black fumes billowing from the top of the building alerted the passersby and a huge crowd gathered in no time. Police and fire brigades arrived to take control of the situation.
The fire broke out at 10:30am, and the building was still blazing till the last update was added to this copy at 11:40am.
Vallabh Bhawan is the workplace of Madhya Pradesh's government's top administrative officers. Damage of several government files and documents in the fire is likely.
The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
(More details awaited)
The 2023 Satpura Fire Saga
Notably, this is the second time in a year that a govt building caught fire. Earlier in June 2023, a fire engulfed Satpura Bhawan, which houses several important departments of the government like nursing department, forest department and more. The flames that broke onto third floor, apparently, due to blast in AC, soon spread to fourth, fifth and sixth floors.
The fire enraged for atleast 12 hours before it could be doused.
The then chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan spoke to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and sought Air Force assistance. Two choppers AN32 and M15 swung into action and helped extinguish the inferno.
The timing of the incident was crucial as state assembly elections were due in November that year.
