Tonnes of biscuits, raw materials and machineries, all worth about Rs 5 crore, were burnt to ashes in a major fire that broke out in a biscuit factory at Infosys Square near Patia here in the wee hours of Monday.
The fire was so intense that around 12 firefighting vehicles and 100 fire brigade personnel took hours from around 4 am till late in the afternoon to douse the blaze. The entire area remained covered with black smoke during the period. However, no casualties were reported.
The reason behind the fire was yet to be ascertained though Directorate of Fire Services officials suspected that an electric short circuit might have led to the mishap.
Fire Officer Ramesh Chandra Majhi said the blaze spread fast in the three-storied building due to stocks of biscuits and inflammable items such as plastic and polythene bags.
According to reports, the factory produces a leading biscuit brand, ParleG, and there were stocks of biscuits of at least 25 varieties in the factory.
The stocks had been piled up as the factory management was waiting to know in which tax slab of the GST biscuits would come, fire officials said.
A JCB machine was deployed to clear the damaged stock of biscuits. The machine broke a wall to clear the damaged stock, fire officials added.
NDRF and ODRAF teams also assisted in bringing the blaze under control.
Officials of the Directorate of Factories and Boilers started investigation into the incident.
“We had earlier served a notice to the factory and demanded some changes in its structure, but so far it has not been complied with. The factory will start re-operation only after the investigation,” they said.