Chief Fire officer L M Kondare said, "Ten fire tenders and four water tankers were rushed to the spot. Fire tenders of the Pune Cantonment Board were also deployed." The reason for fire was not known.

Initially only few huts were gutted. But after two cylinders in the houses burst, the fire started spreading, Kondare said.

"My daughter-in-law was preparing food when she noticed the tin partition in my house getting very hot. She immediately took her eight-month-old son and pulled me out of the house," said Gafoor Rehman Shaikh one of the residents. As soon as we came out, the cylinder inside the hut burst. The Dias Block area is very congested and has around 1,200 settlements within close proximity of each other. A scrap shop and a painting material godown were also damaged in the fire.

Meanwhile, the Pune Municipal Corporation has announced a financial help of Rs 5,000 each to the affected families.