PUNE : A section of Tulshibaugwada, part of the historic Tulshibaug temple complex in Budhwar Peth, was gutted after a fire broke out on Saturday evening.Hundreds of evening shoppers and scores of shop owners ran helter-skelter as the flames and smoke caused panic. No one was injured in the blaze, police said.The wada, which is a ground plus two-storeyed complex, now houses only shops. The Republic Day holiday drew many women shoppers to the wada.The fire broke out in the shop of Sachin Ingle, who sells artificial flowers, carpets and show articles. Ingle’s shop is on the ground floor of the wada and he stores his articles on the second floor. He said the fire did not damage the structure.Fire brigade officials told TOI that since the blaze started in the congested area and a large number of people were present at the spot, it necessitated utmost precautions. Six fire tenders were at the site to quell the blaze which took 30 minutes.According to local shopkeepers and fire brigade officials, sparks from an old electricity pole, which juts onto the tin-sheet roof started the fire. The tin sheets are covered by the polythene sheets to stop water from dripping into the rooms and the staircase of the wada.The shopkeepers told TOI that the sparks fell on the polythene sheets which caught fire. “There were artificial flowers and plants stored in the top floor room. The flames spread quickly engulfing all the articles,” Ingle said.Eyewitnesses said the moment people noticed the fire they began looking for exit points. The fire brigade personnel, shop owners and alert citizens evacuated the heritage structure quickly.Fire engines were stationed on the road leading to Mahatma Phule Mandai. They began aiming the water pipes at the blaze from the top which put out the blaze quickly.Others said the plastic sheet caught fire quickly and since the artificial flowers were also made from plastic, they also burned fast.The lanes leading to Tulshibaugwada are congested with shops, buyers and window-shoppers. There are scores of makeshift stalls selling merchandise of all kinds from plastic mats, footwear, clothes, bags, purses, cosmetics, costume jewellery, toys, embroidery materials to wedding paraphernalia. Many of these items are inflammable.There is hardly any space for pedestrians to walk. Any untoward event can lead to huge loss of property and life, safety experts said.The Pune Municipal Corporation must step up its efforts to decongest these lanes, and the area and crack down on illegal hawking immediately, they added.

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