At least 21 people, including 18 foreign nationals, were killed in a fire at a hotel in News Delhi on Wednesday, police and broadcaster CNN-News18 said, in one of the worst such incidents in the national capital since 2022.
The dead included people from Bangladesh, Nigeria, Mozambique and Liberia, the broadcaster said.
Reuters could not immediately confirm the nationalities of the victims.
Several people had jumped out of the burning building in South Delhi's Malviya Nagar to escape the flames, witnesses said, with residents dragging mattresses from a nearby store to try to break their fall.
"People spread mattresses, and a woman from the third floor jumped on it with a little kid," witness Sher Khan said.
Television footage showed two people jumping from a higher floor of the building as it was engulfed in flames, with smoke billowing out.
Local people who helped in the initial rescue said the fire broke out on the ground and first floors of the four-storey building, trapping those on higher floors.
"There is a mattress shop here ... We took the mattresses from there and laid them on the road to help those who were jumping out of the building," Wasim Raja, a local resident, told news agency ANI.
Upon receiving the information, ten fire tenders were immediately dispatched to the scene. The fire was soon brought under control.
Taking to X, AAP leader Somnath Bharti said, "Massive fire in a multi-storied building in Hauzrani, my assembly constituency, today around 8.30 a.m., casualties possible. Majorly South African nationals."
Search and rescue operations are still underway, and further details are awaited.
FIRE MAY HAVE STARTED IN RESTAURANT
The fire broke out a little before 9am, and eight fire tenders were dispatched to douse the blaze, police said in a statement.
The fire was extinguished around midday, a Reuters witness said.
"Through the coordinated efforts of police, fire services, and other emergency responders, more than 40 persons have been rescued and shifted to nearby hospitals for medical treatment," police said.
"It is with profound sorrow that 21 persons have been declared dead in this tragic incident," it said.
A spokesperson at the state-run All India Institute of Medical Sciences told Reuters the hospital had received 13 patients, two of whom were critical.
"There was reportedly a restaurant operating on the ground floor of the building ... it is most likely that the fire was connected to that restaurant," local administration official Jitendra Kumar told reporters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences for the loss of lives in a post on X. "Authorities are providing all possible assistance to those affected," he said.
This comes a day after ten people were injured after a suspected LPG cylinder explosion led to the collapse of a building in Delhi's Mukundpur area on Tuesday morning.
The Delhi Fire Service received a distress call at around 9:37 a.m. reporting what appeared to be an explosion, followed by the collapse of a residential structure. Emergency teams were immediately mobilised to the site as rescue operations got underway.
According to fire department officials, five fire tenders were rushed to the location soon after the information was received. Rescue personnel and local authorities launched a search operation to check for people trapped under the debris and to prevent any further mishap.
Preliminary information suggests that the incident occurred in a building that was being used as a utensil polishing facility.
The exact cause of the blast is yet to be officially established, though initial investigation indicates that an LPG cylinder explosion may have triggered the collapse.
Officials said the blast was powerful enough to bring down a single-storey structure spread across an area of nearly 250 square yards.
Officials said further details regarding the cause of the explosion and the condition of the injured are awaited.
Agencies