At least 15 people, mostly students and young professionals associated with an animation training centre and gaming zone located on the premises, were killed and over a dozen seriously injured after a devastating fire engulfed a three-storey commercial building in Purania Sector-D of Aliganj area in the state capital on Monday afternoon, said officials.As the blaze spread, thick smoke choked the lone entry and exit point, trapping people inside. (HT Photo/ Deepak Gupta)They said the fire was likely triggered around 2pm by a short circuit in an LED billboard installed in the basement. As the blaze spread, thick smoke choked the lone entry and exit point, trapping people inside. The victims were aged between 20 and 25 years, and included students enrolled at the ‘Learning Space: Head Hopper Studio’, trainers, and others present at the gaming zone.Eyewitness accounts and visuals from the scene showed panic-stricken occupants of the building attempting desperate escapes, with some seen rappelling down electric wires to flee the flames and some jumping off the building as fire crews battled to bring the blaze under control.The building had come up on a plot originally meant for residential use and didn’t have a fire NoC. Under building bylaws, such certificates are required for buildings above 15 metres, but this complex was less than that height, said Ankush Mittal, chief fire officer, Lucknow. “The operators had not approached us for the NoC,” he added.Also Read | Smoke clears, questions remain: Lucknow’s fire tragedies reveal a cycle of neglectWhile the UP government constituted a two-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the fire incident following the chief minister’s directions, investigators were examining whether violations of building norms and deficiencies in fire safety measures contributed to the scale of the disaster.The building housed a pet shop and a clinic occupying the basement, ground and first floor. The second floor had an animation training centre and gaming zone named ‘Learning Space: Head Hopper Studio,’ which handles 3D art production and game asset outsourcing, they added.It took 15-16 fire tenders and over four hours to completely douse the fire.Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the loss of lives in the Lucknow incident and announced financial assistance from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF). In a post on X, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced that an ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased with the injured to be given ₹50,000.After getting information, chief minister Yogi Adityanath cut short his visit to Aligarh and rushed to Lucknow where he inspected the accident site, rescue operation and later met injured victims being treated at the KGMU Trauma Centra, where he promised strict action against those found responsible.He announced financial assistance of ₹5 lakh each for the families of those killed in the devastating fire, while ₹50,000 each will be provided to the injured, the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) stated.Defence minister Rajnath Singh stated that “responsibility will be fixed” for those accountable for the fire tragedy in Lucknow. Upon his arrival in Lucknow, Singh went directly to the site of the incident. There, he received a briefing about the situation from deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak.“The injured are being shifted to hospital and officials have been instructed to provide proper treatment. Six ambulances and medical teams are on the spot. I pray God helps the injured in speedy recovery,” deputy CM Pathak wrote on X. He further said that orders had been issued for a high-level inquiry into the incident.After the fire spread, students at an alleged gaming centre on the second floor locked themselves in the washroom. However, one student saved his life by jumping from the first floor, falling on to a grille below and sustaining serious injuries. The video of the youth purportedly jumping also went viral showing the gravity of the incident.Also Read | Lucknow fire building had demolition notice over illegal construction in 2016, revoked within two monthsAt least 20-21 people were brought to the Trauma Centre of King George’s Medical University (KGMU) following the incident. Of them, 15 were declared brought dead, while five-six injured persons were admitted for treatment and their condition was stable. After the panchnama process, the bodies are being sent to the mortuary for post-mortem process, Dr Prem Raj Singh, CMS, told media persons.The fire exposed glaring lapses in monitoring and enforcement by the LDA, raising questions over how a residential plot was allowed to function as a commercial complex for years. Official records, a copy of which HT has seen, show the 1,992 sq ft property was bought in 2013 by brothers Virendra and Surendra and approved in 2014 only for residential use.Despite this, the structure morphed into a commercial building, even though such approval was against the regulations under prevailing laws as the property lies on an 18-metre-wide road, short of the 24-metre minimum required for commercial complexes.LDA vice-chairman Prathamesh Kumar acknowledged the building was in “clear violation” as the sanctioned map was residential. Chief town planner KK Gautam, however, declined to comment, citing the sensitivity of the matter..