Archive · 20 Aug 2026
Hotel Fires Prompt Siliguri Safety Advisory After 18 Deaths
Two hotel fires in Tarapith and Calcutta killed at least 18 people.
The fires happened on Monday and Wednesday.
After this, a hotel owners’ group in Siliguri warned its members to follow fire-safety rules immediately.
The group represents about 180 hotels in the Siliguri police commissionerate area.
Hotels must have current fire-safety certificates.
They must also keep exits and escape routes clear and unlocked.
Fire equipment such as alarms, extinguishers and sprinklers must work properly.
Three people who died in the Tarapith fire were taken back to their families in Alipurduar for cremation.
Fires at hotels in Tarapith and Calcutta’s Free School Street killed at least 18 people on Monday and Wednesday.
The Greater Siliguri Hotelier Welfare Association issued an immediate fire-safety advisory to its roughly 180 members.
Hotels were told to maintain valid fire-safety certificates and keep trade licences and other documents accessible for inspections.
The advisory requires emergency routes, exits, stairwells and evacuation areas to remain unlocked and unobstructed.
Hotel operators were also urged to check extinguishers, smoke detectors, alarms and sprinkler systems, while families in Alipurduar received the remains of three victims.
- Who
- The Greater Siliguri Hotelier Welfare Association and its roughly 180 hotel-owner members; at least 18 people died in the two fires.
- What
- The association issued an advisory requiring hotels to comply with fire-safety rules and maintain operational emergency equipment.
- When
- The fires occurred on Monday and Wednesday; the advisory was issued afterward, and a fire-safety meeting was scheduled for Thursday.
- Where
- The fires occurred in Tarapith in Birbhum and on Free School Street in Calcutta; the advisory covers hotels in the Siliguri police commissionerate area.
- Why
- The advisory was prompted by the deaths in the two hotel fires and aims to prevent similar incidents.
- Reported deaths
- At least 18 people were killed in the two hotel fires.
- Fire locations
- Tarapith in Birbhum and Free School Street in Calcutta.
- Hotel association
- Greater Siliguri Hotelier Welfare Association.
- Association membership
- Around 180 members across the Siliguri police commissionerate area.
- Required documents
- Valid fire-safety certificates, trade licences and other essential business and property documents.
- Safety checks
- Emergency exits, escape routes, stairwells, extinguishers, smoke detectors, alarms and sprinkler systems.
- Victims returned
- The remains of Amit Pal, Subir Saha and Kamal Roy reached Alipurduar on Wednesday.