Patna:
Altogether 11 people were charred to death and 100 acres of forest area were gutted in incidents of fire in various district of Bihar including Patna, West Champaran and Munger on Friday, officials said.
Five members of a family were killed in the fire at Dumahla locality in Gardanibagh area in Patna as a fire broke out in their hut on Friday morning due to short circuit while they were sleeping.
The victims were identified as Shambhu Prasad (50), his wife Mita Devi (45), son Vikas Kumar (8), daughter Nishu Kumari (5) and mother in-law Shakuntla Devi (70), sources said.
In another incident, a major fire broke out in the New Market under Kotwali police station area in the state capital gutting 100 shops.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar visited the spot and directed local officials to launch rescue measures.
Fire claimed four lives of another family at Misrauli village in West Champaran district as the blaze broke out in their house and spread to the locality reducing to ashes about 200 houses, the sources said.
In Samastipur district, two persons died after they were trapped in a blaze in Chakwa village under Sarairanjan block in which 30 thatched houses were gutted.
Disaster Management Minister Renu Kumari Kushwaha said the kin of each of those killed would be given a compensation of Rs two lakh.
In West Champaran, a wildfire gutted around 100 acres of forest area in Madanpur, Valmiki Nagar and Harnatand in the Valmiki Nagar Tiger Reserve (VTR), VTR-I divisional forest officer Nandkishore said.
Trains passing through VTR were stranded at different places as efforts were on to douse the flames, he said.
Over 1,000 houses were destroyed in a blaze in Bahadur Nagar village and adjoining Diara areas in Munger in which four villagers sustained burn injuries, sources said.
The standing wheat crop, spread over a 1.5 km area, was also destroyed in the fire.
In Araria, a fire broke out in Madanwa village gutting 60 houses and injuring two persons.
Disaster Management Minister Renu Kumari Kushwaha reviewed the situation arising out of fire incidents and asked district magistrates to launch rescue and relief operations.
Besides immediate relief, the district authorities were also directed to provide houses under the Indira Awas Yojana to those Below Poverty Level (BPL) people whose houses were gutted, she said.
Incidents of fire were also reported from Begusarai, Madhubani, Saharsa, Khagaria, Bhagalpur and Saran districts in which over 500 houses have been gutted, the sources said.