1 dead in Bikaner market fire

An elderly man was burnt alive when a market caught fire in Rajasthan’s Bikaner district, police said on Tuesday.

The fire broke out around 10 pm on Monday and, soon, it engulfed the market, which had nearly 22 temporary shops of woolen clothes.

A 55-year-old man, Ramjan, who also had a shop there, got trapped and burnt alive, Kotgate police station inspector Pradeep Singh said.

He said Ramjan was sleeping in the shop. Other shopkeepers managed to escape when the fire broke out, but he could not, he said.

Fire brigades from the army were also pressed into service to control the fire, he said.