A fire gutted a series of stalls and shanties at the Lord's intersection on Prince Anwar Shah Road on Wednesday afternoon.

There were no casualties, police said.

The blaze was reported around 3.10pm from an area locally known as Sandhyabazar, a plot of land at the intersection of Prince Anwar Shah Road and Uday Shankar Sarani that leads to Golf Green.

The plot, which belongs to the state government, has over 90 illegal encroachments, chief minister Mamata Banerjee said at a June 24 meeting with heads of civic bodies, police and senior bureaucrats in Nabanna.

The spot is barely 550m from South City Mall. A series of apartments stand at a stone's throw from the market.

By 3.30pm, the blaze had intensified into a giant ball of flames. Thick black smoke was billowing out of the market. Motorists and pedestrians stopped by to take a look.

Fifteen tenders were pressed into service. The fire was contained by 5pm, said an official of the fire and emergency services department.

But small pockets of fire were raging even after 5.30pm, said locals and bystanders.

"Preliminary findings suggest that the fire started from the sparks of a welder's torch in a garage. The fire spread fast because the area is full of temporary structures loaded with inflammable goods. At least one cylinder explosion made things worse," said an official of the fire and emergency services department.

"The plot is spread over 18 cottahs. Around a dozen stalls have been gutted. Several shanties were also destroyed. Around 15 families have become homeless. We will arrange for an alternate accommodation for them," said Debashis Kumar, a mayoral council member of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, who visited the spot.

More than one person told this newspaper they heard the sound of multiple explosions.

Kanai Gayen, owner of a snack stall that was gutted, said he was home when the fire started. "I reached the spot to find my shop gutted. A tree near my stall was still burning. The flames must have spread to the ceiling of my stall," said Gayen.

Sanatan Naskar, another shop owner, was at the spot when the fire started. "The fire started at a garage behind the stalls, where it first ignited a tree. From there, the flames spread to the shops. I heard two deafening blasts," he added.