Overview
- A fire broke out in parked buses at Bhopal’s Inter‑State Bus Terminal on Sunday evening, spreading from an initial vehicle to nearby buses and causing panic but no reported injuries.
- Fire crews deployed multiple tenders and water bowsers and brought the blaze under control after about an hour, with eyewitnesses describing explosions and staff moving nearby buses and oil tankers to safety.
- Reports vary on the scale of damage with agencies citing seven buses affected while local outlets say eight were hit and list between three and five buses as completely gutted.
- Several damaged vehicles belonged to Verma Travels and the operator estimated losses of roughly Rs 4–5 crore, with many scheduled services to cities such as Ahmedabad and Surat disrupted.
- Police have cordoned the site and opened a probe that will examine CCTV and technical evidence; crowded parking and blocked access routes at the busy terminal are being investigated as factors that slowed emergency response.