Lucknow (Gurpreet Singh)—At least 15 students were killed and several others suffered injuries after a massive fire tore through a private coaching centre in the Aliganj area of Lucknow on Monday afternoon. The tragic incident triggered a large-scale rescue operation and prompted the Uttar Pradesh government to immediately order a high-level inquiry to determine the cause of the blaze and assess potential safety lapses.
The fire broke out around 3:00 pm in Sector-D of Aliganj inside a three-storey commercial building. The lower floors of the structure housed a pet shop and a gaming zone, while the third floor accommodated the coaching centre and a library where numerous students were present. According to eyewitnesses, the fire spread within minutes, filling the building with dense smoke and forcing trapped students to scramble for safety. Several individuals jumped from the upper floors to escape the flames, resulting in severe impact injuries.
Dr Amiya Agrawal, Medical Superintendent of the Trauma Centre at King George’s Medical University, confirmed that 21 to 22 students were brought to the facility. Fifteen students were declared dead on arrival and are being moved to the mortuary for post-mortem examinations. Five injured students have been admitted for treatment, including two who sustained back injuries from jumping from the structure. Emergency responders, including firefighters utilizing a hydraulic platform and a dozen fire tenders, had to break through a first-floor wall to navigate the thick smoke and search every room.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath cut short an official visit to Aligarh to return to the state capital, inspecting the site at 6:15 pm alongside Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak and Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad. The Chief Minister later visited KGMU to review the medical care being provided to the injured and console the grieving families. Adityanath announced an ex-gratia financial assistance of five lakh rupees for the families of the deceased and 50,000 rupees for each injured victim, vowing that any official or individual found negligent would face exemplary punishment.
