A fire broke out at a famous restaurant at the Pandara Road market near India Gate in the early hours of Wednesday, fire officials said, adding that two other neighbouring eateries had to be shut down in precaution even though no casualties were reported in the blaze.
Senior fire control officials said the blaze was reported at the Veg Gulati restaurant in Pandara Road Market at 2.46am on Wednesday when there were no customers inside the eatery.
“We rushed to the spot with five fire tenders and over 35 staffers. The fire had spread to the ground and first floor and adjacent shops. The firemen doused the fire in time and nobody was injured. At the time of the incident, there were no staffers inside. The fire was controlled in time and not much damage was reported,” said Atul Garg, chief of Delhi Fire Services.
Two other famous eateries — Gulati Restaurant and Ichiban — located on either side of Veg Gulati were shut down after the blaze for repair, officials said.
Eyewitnesses said that staffers at Veg Gulati were leaving the restaurant after the day’s service when the fire broke out and engulfed major portions of the restaurant.
Veg Gulati restaurant was started in 1997 and near the famous Gulati Restaurant which has been operational since 1959. Both restaurants are owned and operated by members of the same extended family.
Both restaurants are often crowded, especially late at night, with people usually forming long lines.
The fire had damaged the exterior walls of the building around the restaurants, officials said. NDMC staffers at the spot said they have started repair work on the building and the restaurant owners will oversee paint and repair work inside.
Fire officials stated that the blaze started in the seating area on the ground floor of the restaurant and then spread to the furniture and other equipment on the first floor.
“There were 10-15 of us in the eatery at night. We had shut the main entrance and were cleaning the restaurant. As we were leaving, a fire started on the ground floor. We don’t know how it happened. We took the help of other staffers nearby and tried dousing the fire, but nothing happened. We called fire services,” said a staffer at Veg Gulati, who did not wish to be identified.
Fire officials at the spot said the firemen doused the fire within an hour but the restaurant was heavily damaged in the blaze.
Praveen Gulati, the owner of Veg Gulati, said the fire started around 2.30am and firefighters came in time. “The fire damaged some furniture and equipment. Luckily, there was nobody inside and everyone is safe. We have shut the restaurant for repair work. It will take a few days to get the restaurant started again,” he said.
Fire officials and police said NDMC will inspect the building to check regulations. A fire official said the fire appears to have started near the kitchen due to an electric short circuit. Police have not registered an FIR and an enquiry has been initiated by the staff at Tilak Marg police station.
On Wednesday afternoon, restaurant owners started repairing and cleaning work at the Pandara Road market.
Sumit Gulati, the son of the co-owner of Gulati Restaurant, told HT that his restaurant was safe and the fire started when nobody was inside the restaurant. “We think it was a short circuit… We closed the restaurant on Wednesday for cleaning and small maintenance work. This was because of the smoke damage. We will be open in a couple of days,” he said.
Rajendra Kapoor, a local at Pandara Road and the president of the All India Motor and Goods Transport Association, said, “The fire was big but everyone came to help and threw water to contain the blaze… The fire damaged the compound building. We hope the restaurant owners start the businesses soon.”
Another local at the spot said the fire was massive and could have spread to all the neighbouring shops. She said, “We have seen the restaurants since we were children. It’s sad to see them closed. We are used to the crowd here. However, I am thankful that the fire broke out at night or else many lives would have been at risk. There’s hardly anyone here after midnight.”
HT tried to reach out to staffers at Ichiban but nobody responded to queries.
