Ludhiana, Aug. 26 -- A four-storey cosmetic shop at Sabun Bazar was completely gutted by fire on Monday. It took around 15 fire engines and around two and a half hours for officials to douse the flames. While it wasn't immediately clear as to what caused the fire, officials suspect it may have been caused by a short circuit.

Ludhiana fire officer Jaswinder Singh said all the floors, barring the ground floor, were totally gutted. "We received a call around 4.15pm and it was only by 6:30 pm that we could completely control the fire. As many as 15 engines were pressed into service. We were able to save the ground floor and a generator on the terrace," he said.

"It is a matter of investigation as to what led to the fire but we suspect a sho...