A 60-year -old man and his granddaughter were burnt alive when a fire engulfed thatched houses at Tamilguda village under the Gunupur police limits in Rayagada district on Sunday.
The two were identified as Kandagiri Kiridu and K Sumitra(4). According to reports, a fire which erupted from a house in the village at around 4.30 pm spread rapidly to other houses. The village, home to the Saura tribes, has around 55 houses. Except a few pucca houses, all other houses were reduced to ashes.Around 50 houses were gutted but the exact figure of property damage would be ascertained after a proper survey, official sources said.After the incident, Sub-Collector and Additional District Magistrate and other Government officials rushed to the village to take stock of the situation. The affected, who took shelter in their village school, were provided with dry foods and other eatable materials on behalf of the the gram panchayat, sources said.