Bhubaneswar, Oct. 22 -- A major fire broke out this afternoon at Bhubaneswar's largest marketplace, Unit-1 Haat, destroying around 40 shops and causing property loss worth lakhs of rupees.

According to the Fire Services Department, the blaze reportedly started around 2:40 PM in one of the grocery shops and quickly spread to nearby stores due to the presence of inflammable materials. Dense smoke and intense flames engulfed a major portion of the market, triggering panic among traders and customers.

Fire Fighting On receiving information, fire tenders rushed to the spot and began operations on a war footing. Over 140 firefighters and 15 fire engines were deployed to control the blaze. They battled the flames for nearly half an hour befor...