A massive fire broke out at a photo studio and colour lab located near Bastar High School of the town during Friday wee hours in which property worth lakhs of rupees were reduced to ashes, police said.
An electric short circuit is suspected to be the reason of the fire. According to police, fire was reported by Subodh Awasthi, the owner of the building in which the studio was located and a fire tender pressed into service within 20 minutes. However, till the second fire engine reached the spot, the blaze gained intensity and it spread inside the studio and lab and it reduced several sets of cameras and other equipments kept at the studio to ashes.
The fire was brought under control by fire fighters after two hours of hard work. Many people thronged the spot to witness the incident as the smoke continued to billow till hours. According to police, the loss is estimated to be about Rs25 lakh.