Mahakumbh Nagar: A fire broke out at the ISKCON camp in Mahakumbh Nagar on Friday and quickly spread to over a dozen nearby camps, leaving them gutted, officials said.
Chief Fire Officer Pramod Sharma told PTI that the blaze was reported at 10.35 am after which around a dozen water tenders were rushed to the spot.
“Upon receiving information about the fire at the ISKCON camp in Sector 18, fire tenders were immediately dispatched. The fire was contained fully in half an hour,” he said.
The fire spread to over a dozen nearby camps, causing significant damages. Officials said the cause of the fire and the damage incurred due to it were being ascertained.
DIG (Maha Kumbh) Vaibhav Krishna said the fire incident has “completely been controlled” by the fire brigades. “There is no one injured in it,” he posted on X.
ISKCON’s camp was highlighted for its mega community kitchen being run in association with the Adani Foundation at Sector 19. Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani and his family also visited Maha Kumbh in January, distributing free meals to pilgrims and offered prayers at Sangam.
Officials here said, the Friday fire took place at ISKCON’s other camp in Sector 18, some distance away from its Sector 19 camp.
This is the third major fire at the Maha Kumbh besides multiple minor such incidents.
On January 19, a massive fire broke out in the Maha Kumbh Mela area’s Sector 19 due to a cylinder blast. While no casualties were reported, the blaze had left over a dozen camps gutted.
Earlier on January 25, two cars caught fire in Sector 2 of the Maha Kumbh fair area, but no casualties were reported. Short circuit in one car led to the fire which then spread to the other vehicle parked next to it, according to officials.
The Maha Kumbh, which started on January 13, will continue until February 26.