Traders of Kale Mandi (inside Bohar gate) on Sunday continued their protest against the Mepco and demanded payment of compensation to the victims. Khawaja Suleman Siddiqui, Vice President of Markazi Anjuman Tajiran Punjab, has said that cloth worth Rs 38 million reduced to ashes in the market on Saturday, but no officer turned up to console the victims.
It may recalled that fire broke out at a cloth market in Multan city early Saturday morning that has damaged at least 20 shops of cloth. The fire fighters and rescue teams could douse the flames after three hours hectic efforts.
According to sources, fire broke out at Kalay Mandi Bazaar of Multan early in the morning that gutted 25 to 30 shops rapidly. Eight fire tenders made work to tame the blaze, however, congested streets hampered the rescue efforts. No casualty was reported. Rescue teams also tried to save the residential area of walled city. The electricity has been shut as a precautionary measure to avoid any other untoward situation. The cause of the fire could not be ascertained immediately but short circuit had often been blamed for such incidents in the past, sources added.