What happened here
1 / 11 A fire beginning around 16:40 in a commercial building killed 27 people and injured at least 12. Official and investigative reporting identified unlicensed/unsanctioned use, absent fire clearance, difficult access and severe evacuation limitations.
Quick answers
What happened in the Mundka building fire in Delhi?
On 13 May 2022, a fire began around 16:40 on the first floor of a commercial building near Mundka Metro Station in West Delhi. Smoke and flames trapped workers on upper floors, and 27 people were reported killed with at least 12 injured.
Why did so many people die in the Mundka fire?
Official and investigative reporting pointed to unlicensed use, no sanctioned plan or fire clearance, difficult fire-service access and severe evacuation limits. A single stair near the fire origin can be lost almost immediately.
Why does an office or factory need two escape routes?
High-occupancy workplaces need at least two protected escape routes because one stair close to a fire can be cut off by smoke and flame. Approvals and occupancy limits should be verified before people work in a building.
What to do if fire breaks out in your workplace building?
Raise the alarm, call emergency services and leave at once by the nearest safe route. Do not enter smoke, go to the assembly point, report anyone missing and never re-enter until authorised.
Twenty-seven people died in a building near a Metro station in West Delhi on a Friday afternoon. Most of them were workers on the upper floors. When smoke filled the only way down, some climbed out of windows on ropes and some jumped.
What happened
At about 4.40 pm on 13 May 2022, a fire broke out in a four-storey commercial building near Mundka Metro Station in West Delhi. It started on the first floor, where a business assembling CCTV cameras and routers was operating, and smoke and flames spread upwards fast.
Families began receiving distress calls from people inside at around 4.45 pm, The Indian Express reported. Video showed people hanging from broken windows on a rope and others trying to jump to the building next door.
At least 27 people were killed and at least 12 were injured. The scale only became clear at night, when firefighters could get inside. Many of the dead had to be identified through DNA profiling.
Response
More than 30 fire tenders were sent. Crowded lanes made it hard for fire engines and cranes to reach the building, and local people and firefighters used improvised ways to bring people down.
On 15 May 2022 the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took suo motu cognisance, asked the Delhi government for a report within two weeks and sent its own team for an on-the-spot investigation. Arrests and civic vigilance action followed, and a civic probe suspended three officials for lapses.
On 8 August 2022 Delhi Police filed a charge sheet against five accused, including the building owner and two tenants. The Tees Hazari District Court took cognisance of it on 26 August 2022.
What is known about the cause
The reports we reviewed do not establish what first ignited the fire, only that it began on the first floor where the CCTV and router business was. What they do establish is why so many people could not get out.
- No approvals. An enquiry by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation, cited by NHRC, found the building had no sanctioned plan and the factory had no licence.
- No fire clearance. A building full of workers was in use without fire clearance.
- One way out. People on the upper floors depended on one escape route, and smoke and flame cut it off.
- Access. Narrow, crowded lanes slowed fire engines and cranes.
- Enforcement. Civic staff had not acted on the violations, and a civic probe later suspended three officials.
NHRC also pointed out that this was not new. A fire at Anaj Mandi in 2019 killed 43 people, and NHRC said the action plans on illegal industrial activity drawn up in 2020 and 2021 had not been put into effect.
What remains unknown
- The exact point and cause of ignition.
- The outcome of the criminal case. No trial result was found in the sources we reviewed, and the charges are not convictions.
- Whether the final injury count is higher than the 12 reported at the time.
Lessons
When a building is used without approval, nobody checks its exits. One stair is not an escape plan for a floor full of workers.
- Do not let anyone work in a building that has no sanctioned plan and no fire clearance.
- Every workplace above the ground floor needs at least two protected stairs.
- Keep fire-engine access lanes clear in industrial and commercial areas.
- Keep a daily attendance register so rescuers know who is inside.
- Hold evacuation drills for every floor and every shift.
- Follow civic notices through until the unit is shut or made safe.
If you are caught in a building fire: raise the alarm and leave at the first sign of smoke. If the stair is full of smoke, go into a room away from the fire, shut the door, block the gaps with cloth and signal from a window. Call 101 or 112 with the building name and your floor. Once you are out, tell the fire brigade who is still inside, and never go back in.
If you work above the ground floor, walk to both staircases from your desk today. If there is only one, ask your employer whether the building has fire clearance, and check that the windows near you can be opened from inside.
Reporting limits
Death and injury figures are from NHRC, police and news reports at the time; the injured count of at least 12 may be incomplete. The charge sheet against five accused is an allegation, not a conviction, and no trial outcome was found. The cause of ignition is not established in the sources reviewed. News photographs are linked, not copied.
More on Delhi: see our Delhi fire and emergency safety guide for fire brigade numbers, every fire station and the local risks to know.
- Commercial/factory activity operates without required approvals according to later enquiry
- Fire begins on first floor associated with CCTV/router assembly business
- Smoke and flame trap workers above
- People use windows and improvised rescue; many remain trapped
- Firefighters enter and recover bodies after partial control
- NHRC on-site investigation, arrests, DNA identification and civic vigilance action follow
- Delhi Police file a charge sheet against five accused, including building owner Manish Lakda and tenants Harish and Varun Goyal
- Tees Hazari District Court takes cognizance of the charge sheet
Why consequences escalated
- High-occupancy workplaces need at least two protected escape routes
- A single stair near the fire origin can be lost immediately
- Unsanctioned changes undermine structural and fire-safety review
- Fire-service vehicle access must be preserved in dense industrial areas
- Attendance records and visitor control accelerate accountability
- Civic notices require enforcement and closure, not paper compliance
Failures and risk multipliers
- Running a CCTV and router assembly business in a building with no sanctioned plan and no licence, as the municipal enquiry cited by NHRC found
- Letting a building full of workers operate without fire clearance
- Relying on one escape route that smoke and flame cut off
- Lanes too crowded for easy fire-engine and crane access
- Civic staff not acting on the violations; a civic probe later suspended three officials
Actions that reduce risk
- Do not let people work in a building without sanctioned plans and fire clearance
- Provide at least two protected stairs for any workplace above the ground floor
- Keep fire-engine access lanes clear in industrial and commercial areas
- Keep a daily attendance register so rescuers know who is inside
- Hold evacuation drills for every floor and shift
- Follow up civic notices until the unit is shut or made safe
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