Kapurthala, Dec 24: A suspected electrical short circuit sparked a major fire at a construction plant store of the Jammu-Katra Expressway near Khijarpur village in Kapurthala district on Tuesday night, officials said, with losses estimated at about Rs 2 crore.
Firefighters reached the Talwandi Chaudhrian area shortly after the blaze was reported and managed to contain it, police said.
“The fire has been controlled, and an inquiry is under way to ascertain the cause,” said ASI Balbir Singh of Talwandi Chaudhrian police station.
According to the project’s store manager, the facility was closed hours before the incident. “The store was shut around 7 p.m., and there was a security guard on duty,” said Mandeep Singh of SP Singla Construction Company.
He said the guard noticed smoke around 8 p.m. and raised the alarm. “When I arrived, the fire had already spread extensively,” Singh said.
The flames destroyed costly chemicals stored inside the facility, he said, resulting in heavy financial damage. Singh said preliminary assessment pointed to a short circuit, though police said they would confirm the cause after completing the investigation.
