Overview
- A fire broke out at Bagadia (Bagadiya) Tower in Ujjain on Wednesday evening and emergency teams evacuated about 50 people while roughly 12–15 were rescued from heavy smoke.
- Police, the district administration, the State Disaster Response Force and the municipal fire brigade led the rescue using ladders, cranes and suspended platforms as narrow alleys and dense smoke made access difficult.
- Officials and multiple reports say the blaze likely started in a ground-floor medical store where a closed shutter let smoke move to upper floors through a ventilation chamber.
- The tower owner has alleged that large quantities of expired medicines were stored in vacant shops and that a prior complaint was filed, and a local MP visited the scene and announced cash rewards for rescuers.
- Investigators have taken charge to determine the exact cause and any safety lapses, and the probe could raise questions about fire checks, commercial storage rules and enforcement in older mixed-use buildings.