DHAKA: At least 10 people have been killed and several others were injured when a fire that broke out in a hotel in northern India.

Police said the fire broke out just before 05:00 local time (23:30GMT) on Friday in a restaurant and spread to the hotel next door in Pratapgarh town in Uttar Pradesh state.

Most of the hotel guests were asleep when the fire started, police added.

Officials said the cause of the fire was an electric short circuit.

“The deaths were due to asphyxiation,” District Magistrate Amrit Tripathi told BBC.

Four fire service vehicles were sent to the site and the fire was put out in 15-20 minutes, Tripathi added.

He said the injured have been sent to the district hospital in Pratapgarh. Five of the injured, who are serious, have been sent to the nearby city of Allahabad for treatment.

BDST: 1608 HRS, JUNE 19, 2015
BD/