A fire, suspected to have been caused by a short-circuit, gutted a garment showroom - Fashion World- at Jhanda Chowk in Sakchi, a commercial hub of Jamshedpur, on Wednesday afternoon. The fire first caught at the godown of the showroom based on the first floor of the showroom at around 1. 15 pm.

A salesmen of the showroom, who first noticed the fire, soon informed the fire brigade. It took around two hours for two fire tenders belonging to the state fire department and Tata Steel to bring the blaze under control. Timely arrival of the fire tenders prevented the fire from spreading to the near-by shops.

Inderjeet Singh Bindra, the owner of the showroom said, "The extent of financial losses incurred due to the fire mishap could not be immediately estimated. But, the losses would be to the tune of several lakhs."

Soon after getting information of the fire mishap president of Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry ( SCCI ) Vijay Anand Moonka reached the spot. He demanded removal of encroachments on the footpaths and on the roads at the Sakchi market.

Moonka also demanded activation of the fire hydrants at the Sakchi market, which are lying defunct. Officer- in- charge of Sakchi thana Rajesh Singh, who too had come to the spot said, "The fire appears to have been caused by a possible short-circuit. A probe has been initiated in this regard."

Fire mishaps during summer is common at the congested Sakchi market. Last year two mishaps were reported from that commercial hub.