Manipur: Fire destroys books, artwork at Kakching District library

Imphal: A fire that broke out in the stacks of the Kakching District Library and Information Centre in Manipur on Sunday morning raged for nearly two hours, severely damaging or destroying hundreds of books, pictures, artwork, and a legal aid clinic located on the ground floor.

Officials estimated the loss to run into several lakhs of rupees.

The fire began around 11 a.m. in the periodicals and legal aid clinic section on the first floor of the two-storey building.

Seven firefighters, assisted by local club volunteers, battled the flames after receiving an emergency call.

Investigators suspect that an accidental short circuit caused the fire.

Readers who had arrived to attend a special Sunday programme at the library first noticed the flames and promptly alerted the fire services.

Two fire tenders from Kakching District Fire Services responded swiftly.

A fire department official initially feared that the fire or the water used to extinguish it had damaged nearly all of the library’s collection.

However, after further inspection, officials confirmed that some areas on the second floor remained untouched.

An assistant librarian estimated that the fire destroyed around 25% of the building.

He added that the thousands of gallons of water sprayed during the operation had left “the whole collection at risk.”