The fire started from the Ashok Woollen Traders shop in the first floor of a building inside the narrow lanes of Ballimaran at 2 p.m. The blaze quickly spread to the second floor of the building, where one godown and four shops, also storing woollen garments and blankets, were located.

Sixteen fire tenders went to the spot and managed to bring the fire under control within an hour.

The Chandni Chowk Police have registered a case. Though the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, the police suspect that a short-circuit sparked off the blaze. They have ruled out foul play. A senior police official said Ballimaran and adjoining areas like Nai Sadak account for the highest number of fires in the Capital each year because of the tangle of electric wires across the narrow lanes. The joints on several of these wires are exposed. The shop owners, on the other hand, blamed local DVB officials for ``not carrying out repairs and relaying the wires'' despite repeated requests.