A fire broke out on Wednesday in a new building on the Patna Museum premises, according to officials.

The historic Patna Museum, home to a collection of rich artefacts, rare paintings and 200 million-year-old fossilised tree trunk, has been closed for visitors since June 1 last year to undertake a revamp of its 96-year-old building.

“The fire broke out in a section of a newly constructed building, which is an extension of the old heritage building of the Patna Museum. Several fire tenders were pressed into service. However, no major injury has been reported so far,” a senior official at the museum said.

This new wing, built to the west of the old museum building, will also house a gallery, he said, adding the fire has been contained.

It remains to be ascertained if any damage was caused to any artefacts in the incident.

A project on redevelopment of the museum building, located on the old Patna-Gaya Road, is currently underway, whose foundation stone was laid by chief minister Nitish Kumar in August 2020.