A fierce blaze tore through a five-storey residential and commercial complex in Ujjain on Wednesday, trapping between 10 and 15 people on the upper floors as thick smoke choked escape routes.
Six fire tenders raced into the congested Old Kotwali police precinct to battle the flames at Bagadiya Tower. Rescuers hoisted ladders against the building's exterior, pulling several occupants to safety through blackened windows. But panic surged as multiple women remained cut off on the upper levels. Emergency crews from the municipal fire department, city police, and the State Disaster Response Force launched an immediate joint evacuation.
The building sits hemmed inside a dense urban pocket. Heavy fire engines fought for inches through the tight approach. Rescuers scrambled on foot.
The fire erupted while a group of residents sat gathered on the third floor for a ceremonial recitation of the Garuda Purana. Acrid fumes rolled up the central stairwell without warning.
Several attendees scrambled toward outer balconies as fire crews extended emergency ladders to reach them. While initial evacuees climbed down to street level, flames blocked the primary exit points, leaving others stranded directly above the heat.
Police believe the inferno started at ground level before climbing through the structure. A pharmacy operates inside the building, and early evidence indicates the fire originated within the medical outlet before spreading gradually across the commercial and residential floors above.
Some people were still trapped on the top floor, but police personnel were with them to ensure their safety.
Pradeep Sharma, Superintendent of Police, Ujjain
Officers scaled the structure to reach the stranded group on the rooftop, stationing personnel directly alongside the terrified residents to manage the evacuation.
Physical access remained the primary bottleneck throughout the operation. District Magistrate Roshan Kumar Singh arrived at the scene alongside the Superintendent of Police to coordinate logistics as municipal crews worked to establish water relays through the narrow access road.
The administration deployed aerial drones above Bagadiya Tower to map structural hot spots and identify trapped residents through the rising smoke. Police cordoned off the entire Old Kotwali commercial strip, clearing bystanders to keep emergency corridors open for ambulances and water tankers.
| Emergency Operation Parameter | On-Site Status |
|---|---|
| Location | Bagadiya Tower, Old Kotwali, Ujjain |
| Structure Type | Five-Storey Residential-cum-Commercial Building |
| Trapped Occupants | Estimated 10 to 15 Persons |
| Responding Agencies | Municipal Fire Dept, SDRF, District Police |
| Heavy Apparatus Deployed | 6 Fire Tenders, Aerial Surveillance Drones |
| Suspected Point of Origin | Ground-Floor Pharmacy Complex |
The Operational Context: Dense inner-city commercial hubs across older tier-two cities present severe structural vulnerabilities during urban fires. High fuel loads from retail premises—such as chemical and pharmaceutical packaging—mix directly with multi-family residential floors above, while narrow lanes sharply constrain standard hydraulic platforms.
Firefighting and SDRF evacuation efforts continue at Bagadiya Tower as emergency personnel clear remaining upper-floor rooms and work to systematically extinguish underlying embers across the lower commercial units.