A woman and four of her children were killed in a blaze in Kushinagar district of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, police said.
Three more people, including two members of the family, sustained burn injuries in the incident that occurred in the afternoon and were hospitalised, they said.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the loss of lives and announced an ex-gratia amount of Rs 4 lakh each for the victims, according to an official release.
A hut in Maghi Mathia village, located within the Ramkola police station limits, caught fire due to reasons that are yet to be ascertained. The fire soon spread to three "pucca" houses, District Magistrate (DM) Ramesh Ranjan said.
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The DM added that Sher Mohammad's wife and four of her children, who were sleeping in one of the "pucca" houses, were killed in the incident.
The father-in-law and mother-in-law of the deceased woman, besides one of her neighbours, were injured.
The cause of the fire is being ascertained, the DM said.
The three people who suffered burn injuries are being treated at a district hospital and their condition is stated to be stable, Ranjan said, adding that the district administration is providing all possible help to the victims.
Meanwhile, Adityanath has directed officials to ensure proper treatment of the injured and hoped for their speedy recovery. He has also asked the officials to expedite the relief work, the release said.
