Firefighters evacuated people on April 29, 2025 after a fire broke out in a hotel in Mechuan, Kolkata. Image source: PTI
A huge fire broke out at a central Kolkata hotel in Mechuia on Tuesday night (29 April 2025), killing at least 14 people and injuring 13 others. A man jumped out of the building and tried to escape the fire in panic. The remaining 13 people died due to suffocation.
Most of these people died of suffocation because the crowded lanes of burritos made rescue operations difficult. The fire started around 8:15 pm on Tuesday (April 29, 2025) and was under control in the early hours of Wednesday (April 30, 2025). More than 10 fire trucks worked overnight to put out the fire.
“A total of 14 people died in the fire at Rituraj Hotel. Further investigations are underway and a special investigation team has been set up to investigate the matter.” Police Commissioner Manoj Kumar Verma told media personnel during a visit to the affected area.
Rituraj Hotel is a six-story building in Kolkata’s crowded Myanmar region, with 88 out of 42 rooms, according to Indira Mukherjee, deputy director of the central department. There are about 60 employees present at the venue.
Two children were also killed in the fire, according to police. Eight bodies have been identified and the rest are being processed. The 13 injured were taken to the hospital, 12 of whom have been discharged, and one of them is still under observation.
Panic spread among locals after the fire broke out at the Madan Mohan Barman Street hotel, many attempting to escape from the hotel balcony. Firefighters and police constantly urge people not to panic and jump. But at the same time, Manoj Paswan jumped out of the top to save himself from the fire. He was taken to a medical school hospital and pronounced dead.
A worker at Rituraj Hotel said: “The fire started on the first floor of the hotel. Our owners kept screaming and asked customers to try their best to put out the fire with a bucket.”
Mayors of Kolkata Municipal Corporation Firhad Hakim and Minister Shashi Panja visited the site and took stock of the rescue operations.
“We won’t know the real cause of the fire until there is no time forensics,” Mr. Hakeem told media staff after visiting the site.
According to the mayor, as the fire began to rise on the lower floor of the hotel, the smoke filled the upper floor stories and made it difficult for people to leave the main entrance. Hotel staff said this caused panic and everyone rushed to the top floor and the terrace.
Opposition Suvendu Adhikari expressed condolences to the death, but also questioned infrastructure and security measures. He called for a thorough investigation and wrote on the social media handle: “But the most worrying thing is that the tragedy hit the heart of Kolkata, but the response was not sufficient and prompted, given the location.”
Kolkata has witnessed several major fire accidents, such as the Stephen Court fire in March 2010 and the fire tragedy at Amri Hospital in December 2011 claimed several lives.
publishing – April 30, 2025 at 10:02 am
