Hyderabad fire claims 17 lives, investigation underway

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], May 19 (ANI): A massive fire broke out early on May 18 at a family residence located on the first floor above the Modi Pearls jewellery shop in Gulzar House, Charkaman area of Charminar, Hyderabad, resulting in the death of 17 people.
According to an FIR filed by Utkarsh Modi, son of Vinod Modi, his father received an urgent phone call at around 6:45 AM from their relative Rohit, who informed them about the fire engulfing their family home.
Utkarsh Modi and his father rushed to the scene, where they found the building ablaze, with emergency teams already present and working to control the fire and evacuate those inside.
Seventeen people, including children, were severely affected and shifted to multiple hospitals such as Yashoda Hospitals, Apollo Hospitals, Care Hospitals, and Osmania General Hospital.
Unfortunately, all 17 victims were declared dead by the doctors. The deceased include Rajini Agarwal, Pankaj Modi, Varsha Modi, their children Aanya, Idhika, and Iraaj Modi, Rishab Jain, Abhishek Modi, Arushi Jain, Sheetal Jain, Harshali Gupta, Rajender Kumar, Sumitra Modi, Prahalad Rai Modi, Munni Bai Modi, Pratham Agarwal, and Pranshi Agarwal.
The bodies were later sent for post-mortem examination at Osmania General Hospital.
The FIR also noted that the two shops on the ground floor- Modi Pearls and Krishna Pearls & Jewellers- were completely destroyed by the fire. A case has been registered under Crime No. 83/2025 by the Charminar Police Station, and an investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
An ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakhs has been announced by the state government for the families of the victims who lost their lives in the fire incident at Gulzar Houz.
Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the families of the victims.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for each kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to those injured in the mishap, from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF).
Expressing grief over the incident, Prime Minister Modi said he was "deeply anguished" by the loss of lives in the fire at a building at Hyderabad's Gulzar Houz.
In a post on X, the Prime Minister's Office wrote, "Deeply anguished by the loss of lives due to a fire tragedy in Hyderabad, Telangana. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May the injured recover soon. An ex gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000."
Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy expressed deep shock over the tragic fire mishap that occurred near Gulzar House in the Old City of Hyderabad.
The Chief Minister instructed the top officials to take all necessary measures to save the families trapped in the fire accident. He also issued orders to shift the injured to nearby hospitals and provide better medical treatment.
According to a fire department official, a preliminary examination of the blaze indicated that a short circuit led to the massive blaze. The cause of death of all the 17 people was smoke inhalation, "nobody had burn injuries," Telangana Disaster Response and Fire Services DG Y Nagi Reddy said.
However, Deputy CM Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu said the fire may have been caused by a short circuit or a gas cylinder blast.
The list of the 17 deceased released by the Telangana Fire Disaster Response Emergency and Civil Defence includes the names of eight children under the age of 10.
The youngest in the list was identified as one Prathan (1.5 years old). The seven other children have been identified as Hamey (7), Priyansh (4), Iraaj (2), Arushi (3), Rishabh (4), Anuyan (3) and Iddu (4).
An eyewitness of the fire incident said that the blaze was at the rear end of the building. (ANI)