Ludhiana Jassian Road Fire: Scrap Godown Blaze Spreads to Jhuggis, About 15 Huts Burn, Cylinders Burst; Injury Reports Differ, Cause Not Established

What happened

On the night of Monday, 2 November 2026, a large fire broke out at a scrap godown plot on Jassian Road in Ludhiana, Punjab, and spread to the jhuggis (huts) built on and beside the same plot. The Tribune says the fire started at about 10.45 pm at a scrap godown near Bhagat Hospital and that, according to the Fire Department, 25 to 35 fire tenders were used. A fire officer told Jagbani the call came at about 10.50 pm, that five and then six water tenders were sent and that the cause was not yet known. According to Jagbani, about a dozen jhuggis were burnt to ashes. ETV Bharat says that strong wind carried the fire from the godown to the jhuggis, that the fire brigade had the huts vacated and that cylinders kept in the huts burst, which made the fire spread faster.

Dainik Jagran describes it differently. It says that sparks from crackers set about 15 jhuggis on fire at about 11.30 pm, that four to five gas cylinders burst one after another and that three to four people were scorched. Dainik Jagran does not mention a scrap godown. Jagbani and ETV Bharat do, and they place the jhuggis beside it; we have therefore treated these as one fire, but the Jagran account is the only one that reports injuries. Checked on 3 November 2026; the Tribune’s report says the fire was still not under control when it was filed, and ETV Bharat’s later report says it was controlled with no loss of life.

Where the reports agree, and where they do not

• Casualties: Dainik Jagran says three to four people were scorched. The Tribune says no casualties had been reported. Jagbani says no one died, while the fire officer first said it was hard to tell because many people live on the plot. ETV Bharat quotes the fire officer as saying there was no loss of life. We do not have a hospital record for any injured person.
• Number of huts: about 15 (Dainik Jagran), about a dozen or more (Jagbani); ETV Bharat says only “some”. Jagbani adds that locals say about 40 jhuggis stood on the plot.
• Size of the response: five then six water tenders (Jagbani’s fire officer) against 25 to 35 tenders (The Tribune, citing the Fire Department). These may be the early and the later counts; no report says so.
• Time: about 10.45 pm (Tribune), about 10.50 pm (fire officer in Jagbani) and about 11.30 pm (Dainik Jagran, for the jhuggis catching fire).
• Place: Prem Vihar on Jassian Road (Jagbani); near Bhagat Hospital on Jassian Road (The Tribune); near Haibowal Jassian Chowk (ETV Bharat). We could not locate the plot and have used an approximate point near the hospital.
• Cause: not established. Dainik Jagran says crackers; ETV Bharat quotes a local resident who thinks it looks like crackers because children burst them in the area. The Tribune and Jagbani say the cause was not yet known. We treat crackers as an unverified possibility.

What is not known

• What started the fire, and whether it began in the scrap or in a hut.
• Whether anyone was injured, how many and how seriously, and whether anyone was taken to hospital.
• How many families lost their homes, and the value of the scrap and of the huts’ contents.
• Whether the scrap plot was licensed, who owns it, whether the huts were built with permission and whether any action has been taken. Residents told Jagbani that complaints had been made to the administration earlier without any result; this is their claim and we have not been able to check it.

What the incident teaches

The Tribune, ETV Bharat and Jagbani agree on the hazard even where they differ on the numbers: a scrap godown full of material that burns and gives off smoke, next to a cluster of tin and tarpaulin huts where families cook on gas cylinders, two days before the cracker-heavy days of Diwali. The fire officer’s own first answer, that it was hard to say whether anyone was hurt because many people live on the plot, tells the story. When people live in or beside a godown, a fire is a rescue problem as well as a firefighting problem.

Ludhiana had another serious fire three days earlier. Read our case study on the Field Ganj firecracker fire, where one person died. For other fires where cylinders in huts or shelters made things worse, see the Mogappair West hut fire in Chennai, the Coimbatore LPG shelter fire and the Saki Naka scrap godown fire in Mumbai.

Safety steps for families living beside scrap, godowns and crowded huts

These are general practices, not a finding about this fire.

• Keep crackers and flames away. Do not burst crackers near huts, scrap or waste heaps, and tell children why. Our Diwali safety guide and the note on cracker storage before Diwali explain the risks.
• Move the cylinder out when the fire starts, only if you can do it safely. If the fire is already at the hut, do not go back for the cylinder. Get everyone out first and move away from the huts; cylinders can burst. See LPG gas leak: what to do right now.
• Agree an exit and a meeting point. In a close cluster of huts the fire can cover a whole row in minutes. Everyone should know two ways out and where to gather.
• Call early. Dial 101 or 112 at the first sign of fire. See the guide to emergency numbers. Keep a lane clear so that a fire engine can reach the huts.
• For the neighbourhood: if a scrap or waste plot beside homes holds stacked or oily material, report it to the municipal corporation and the fire department in writing and keep a copy.
• Live or work in Ludhiana? Our Ludhiana safety guide lists the emergency numbers and the main local risks, from textile-unit fires and toxic sewer gas to waterlogging.