More than 30 shanties belonging to migrant labourers were razed to the ground in a fire at Sehjo Majra village near Machhiwara on Sunday afternoon, leaving several families homeless.
Fire officials said no casualties were reported, while the exact cause of the blaze is yet to be ascertained.
According to local residents, the fire allegedly started in one of the temporary shelters and spread rapidly through the settlement within minutes. The labourers had been residing in the makeshift dwellings for several years while working in nearby agricultural fields.
At the time of the incident, male labourers were at work, while women and children were present inside the shanties. Residents first evacuated children and domestic animals before attempting to contain the blaze with assistance from villagers.
On receiving information, deputy superintendent of police Pritpal Singh and assistant sub-inspector Sohan Singh reached the spot along with police personnel. Fire tenders from Samrala and adjoining areas were pressed into service and the blaze was brought under control after nearly three hours of firefighting operations.
Residents claimed the inferno destroyed cash, household articles, food grains, utensils, clothes, school books, bicycles and documents.
Administrative officials later visited the site and prepared a list of affected families to assess damage for compensation.
Sehjo Majra village sarpanch Jasvir Singh demanded immediate financial assistance and rehabilitation support for the affected labourers.
