A major fire broke out at one of the hostels of Sainik School at Pangei, Imphal East on Saturday, but no casualty was reported in the incident, sources said.
According to the sources, an inferno that engulfed the school hostel (Raman House) broke out around noon. No casualty was reported in the incident as all the students were at the school building, when the fire broke out. However, the belongings of students were burnt to ashes.
While the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, it is suspected that the fire may have started from the paddy field adjacent to the hostel building.
The Manipur fire service rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire at around 2pm, the sources said.
According to sources, properties worth around Rs 55-60 lakhs were destroyed.
However, fire department officials told IFP that the estimated amount of damage is hard to say. They were told by the school authorities that the amount of damage can be estimated after investigation of the belongings of the students staying in the hostel.
Former Education Minister Th Radheshyam, an alumni of the school visited the incident site and said he will consult with the education minister to depute some officials in order to take necessary steps so that the school curriculum might not be affected.
Radheshyam said the class X examination has already started and proper counselling is needed for the students staying in Raman House.
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