Kolkata, Aug. 19: Nine people, including two women and a child, died after a fire broke out at a hotel building on Mirza Ghalib Street in central Kolkata early on Wednesday, with preliminary findings indicating that the victims died of suffocation caused by thick smoke rather than burn injuries.
Following the tragedy, the West Bengal government has decided to conduct a comprehensive audit of hotels, lodges and guesthouses in the Mirza Ghalib Street area, where concerns have emerged over narrow passageways, ventilation and emergency evacuation facilities.
Initial findings by the Kolkata Police and the West Bengal Fire Services Department indicated that the intensity of the fire inside the building was not particularly high. However, thick black smoke spread through the premises, causing severe breathing difficulties and creating confusion among those attempting to escape.
A fire services official at the spot said that when the nine bodies were recovered, there were not many burn injuries, pointing towards suffocation as the likely cause of death.
The building’s layout is also under scrutiny. According to officials, the entry and exit spaces were extremely narrow, making evacuation more difficult after the premises filled with smoke.
Investigators initially believed that the fire had broken out in a single hotel. However, it was subsequently found that the building housed more than one hotel or guesthouse, with different floors occupied by separate establishments.
According to a police officer, the fire originated at a hotel on the third floor. Although the fire itself was not described as being of high intensity, smoke gradually spread through the building and eventually engulfed the premises.
Residents, already struggling to breathe, reportedly found it difficult to identify a safe route out through the narrow passages.
West Bengal Minister of State for Fire Services Koushik Chowdhury said the government would now undertake a thorough audit of hotels, lodges and guesthouses in the locality.
He pointed to concerns regarding the narrow passageways and the absence of an external staircase for emergency evacuation at the building where the fire occurred. He also said that a major fire station was located close to the site of the incident.
Chowdhury said the decision to carry out the audit was taken following discussions with the Chief Minister, adding that the government would adopt a “zero tolerance” approach against entities found to be violating safety norms.
The latest tragedy has also brought renewed attention to an earlier fire incident in central Kolkata. In April 2025, a fire at Hotel Rituraj in the Mechua area of Jorasanko claimed 14 lives.
Following that incident, a special audit committee had reportedly been formed to review fire and safety norms at hotels within the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area.
However, according to a fire services department official, the audit process did not progress to completion. The department reportedly faced manpower constraints and had to depend on a third party for the exercise. The committee held four meetings, but the audit report was not submitted to either the Kolkata Municipal Corporation or the state fire services department.
A fire services official said the earlier audit process had stopped midway, while requests for additional funds for recruitment to address manpower shortages had also not received sanction.
Meanwhile, the circumstances surrounding the Mirza Ghalib Street fire and the safety standards of the building are expected to remain under scrutiny.
The area is known for a concentration of budget hotels and lodges catering to visitors from different parts of India and abroad. A local resident claimed that the locality also accommodates visitors travelling to Kolkata for medical treatment, although the identities and nationalities of the victims had not been officially confirmed in the information available.
A local BJP leader alleged that several properties in the area had been illegally converted from residential to commercial use and that structural changes had contributed to narrow passages. These allegations have not been independently established in the information available.
As investigations continue, the West Bengal government’s proposed audit is expected to focus attention on fire safety arrangements, emergency exits, ventilation and compliance with safety norms at hotels and lodges in the Mirza Ghalib Street area.
The immediate tragedy has claimed nine lives, while preliminary findings suggest that the spread of thick smoke, combined with restricted movement and narrow evacuation routes, played a critical role in the deaths.
