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Massive Fire at Government Building in Bengal; 4,000 EVMs Reduced to Ashes
Kolkata: Approximately 4,000 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were reduced to ashes in a massive fire that broke out at a government building in the Alipore area of ??Kolkata, West Bengal. These EVMs had been used in 10 constituencies during the recently concluded assembly elections. Following the incident, the administration has initiated an inquiry to determine the cause of the fire.
The fire broke out on Wednesday morning in a multi-story building that houses various government departments, including the South 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad office. Multiple fire tenders rushed to the scene to douse the flames. The fire was brought under control after an effort lasting nearly 24 hours.
After inspecting the site, State Fire Minister Kaushik Chowdhury remarked that the fire did not appear to be a routine incident. Questions are being raised about how the fire—which started on the lower floors—skipped intermediate levels to reach the upper floors directly. Consequently, the possibility of sabotage is being investigated, although no concrete evidence has surfaced so far.
The administration has registered an FIR and launched an investigation, with forensic experts collecting samples from the site. Authorities are investigating whether a short circuit or another factor was responsible for the blaze. The exact cause of the fire will only be ascertained once the forensic report is received.
The incident has also heated up the state's political atmosphere, with the opposition demanding an impartial inquiry.
Kolkata: Approximately 4,000 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were reduced to ashes in a massive fire that broke out at a government building in the Alipore area of ??Kolkata, West Bengal. These EVMs had been used in 10 constituencies during the recently concluded assembly elections. Following the incident, the administration has initiated an inquiry to determine the cause of the fire.
The fire broke out on Wednesday morning in a multi-story building that houses various government departments, including the South 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad office. Multiple fire tenders rushed to the scene to douse the flames. The fire was brought under control after an effort lasting nearly 24 hours.
After inspecting the site, State Fire Minister Kaushik Chowdhury remarked that the fire did not appear to be a routine incident. Questions are being raised about how the fire—which started on the lower floors—skipped intermediate levels to reach the upper floors directly. Consequently, the possibility of sabotage is being investigated, although no concrete evidence has surfaced so far.
The administration has registered an FIR and launched an investigation, with forensic experts collecting samples from the site. Authorities are investigating whether a short circuit or another factor was responsible for the blaze. The exact cause of the fire will only be ascertained once the forensic report is received.
The incident has also heated up the state's political atmosphere, with the opposition demanding an impartial inquiry.
The fire broke out on Wednesday morning in a multi-story building that houses various government departments, including the South 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad office. Multiple fire tenders rushed to the scene to douse the flames. The fire was brought under control after an effort lasting nearly 24 hours.
After inspecting the site, State Fire Minister Kaushik Chowdhury remarked that the fire did not appear to be a routine incident. Questions are being raised about how the fire—which started on the lower floors—skipped intermediate levels to reach the upper floors directly. Consequently, the possibility of sabotage is being investigated, although no concrete evidence has surfaced so far.
The administration has registered an FIR and launched an investigation, with forensic experts collecting samples from the site. Authorities are investigating whether a short circuit or another factor was responsible for the blaze. The exact cause of the fire will only be ascertained once the forensic report is received.
The incident has also heated up the state's political atmosphere, with the opposition demanding an impartial inquiry.
