At least 15 people, including children, died in a major fire at a commercial building in Lucknow’s Aliganj area, according to India Today. Several others were injured as police and emergency teams carried out a large rescue operation at the multi-storey property.
King George’s Medical University Vice Chancellor Sonia Nityanand said 15 bodies were brought to the hospital. She reported that one student had suffered a serious spinal injury and that other injured people were receiving treatment. The supplied source did not provide a complete list of victims or a settled injury total.
Police officers trying to reach people trapped inside climbed onto a neighboring roof and used hammers to break through a wall, creating another route into the building. The operation unfolded amid questions about the premises’ approved use and safety arrangements. Records cited in the report showed that the property had an approved residential building plan, although it was allegedly converted for commercial use.
Authorities said the building owner had not sought a fire-service no-objection certificate. Officials also pointed to an exemption under which buildings below 15 metres in height and covering less than 500 square metres did not require that certificate, and said preliminary information indicated the complex fell within those limits. Investigators were expected to examine whether the management complied with other safety rules and approvals.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath formed a two-member Special Investigation Team consisting of senior official Amrit Abhijat and Lucknow Zone Additional Director General of Police Praveen Kumar. The investigation was directed to examine the fire’s cause, statutory approvals, safety compliance and possible negligence, identify the roles of people or institutions, and report to the state government within seven days. The Lucknow Development Authority also constituted a separate five-member panel.
Police registered a case against six named suspects and others under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Uttar Pradesh Fire Service Act. Four people had been arrested as the inquiry continued. Four government officials were suspended, including two Lucknow Development Authority engineers, an electricity-department executive engineer and a fire-safety official. Arrests and suspensions are investigative or administrative steps and do not establish guilt.
The reporting did not provide a final determination of how the blaze began. That question, alongside the building’s status and the adequacy of its escape and fire-protection measures, remained for the investigations to resolve. The confirmed human toll made those inquiries an urgent test of both individual accountability and public oversight. Any final account will also need to reconcile the regulatory exemption described by officials with the other permissions and precautions allegedly missing at a building used by students and commercial tenants.
