Fire at GIFT City’s temporary administrative office

A fire broke out at the temporary administrative office of Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) near here today, officials said. Gift City staff first tried to douse the flames using in-house fire-fighting system and then called the fire brigade, said the Chief Fire Officer of Gandhinagar, Mahesh Modh.

Modh and his team rushed to the GIFT City campus with three fire tenders. As the fire was spreading fast due to strong winds, more fire tenders were called in, he said.

The temporary administrative block houses an office, a conference room and a cafeteria. “The fire started in one part of the single-storey structure and quickly spread in adjacent portions. Though it wasn’t major when it was first spotted, it spread quickly due to strong winds. We have called in additional fire tenders from Ahmedabad and Kalol,” said Modh.

There were no reports of anybody getting injured as the staff vacated the premises on time, he added. Though the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, he did not rule out the possibility of a short circuit.

According to GIFT City officials, many documents inside the office were shifted before fire could destroy them. LPG cylinders in the cafeteria too were shifted out in time. The temporary administrative block once housed the office of the CEO and MD of GIFT City, Ajay Pandey, which is now shifted elsewhere. Offices of some banks too have been shifted from there, officials said.