A tragic incident occurred in the Tatibandh area of Raipur, Chhattisgarh, where a 70-year-old man, Rajkumar Gupta, lost his life in a house fire. Neighbors noticed smoke billowing from the house around 8 AM on Saturday and rushed to help. However, they were unable to enter the premises because the main gate was locked from the outside. The police were notified and arrived at the scene to find the victim had already succumbed to the blaze. An investigation is currently underway to determine the exact cause of the fire, which is suspected to have started from a room heater.
Mr. Gupta was alone at home at the time of the incident. His son, Jitendra, who works at a rolling mill in Urla, had locked the gate before leaving for work at his father’s request. Other family members were away on a pilgrimage to Maihar. The son explained that his father preferred to stay indoors due to the cold and asked for the gate to be secured. By the time the fire brigade arrived, nearly 90 minutes after the initial call, the fire had already caused fatal injuries.