At least 21 people died in a fire that broke out on the morning of June 3 at a hotel building in Malviya Nagar, a densely populated residential area in south Delhi popular with students and young professionals [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11]. More than 40 people were rescued and taken to hospitals for treatment [1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11].

The fire started in a building housing a restaurant on the ground floor with a hotel or bed-and-breakfast operating above it [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11]. Jitendra Kumar, a local administration official, said, "There was reportedly a restaurant operating on the ground floor of the building ... it is most likely that the fire was connected to that restaurant" [1]. Firefighters deployed eight fire engines to bring the blaze under control [5, 6]. Eyewitnesses saw two people jump from higher floors to escape the flames [1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11].

Among the deceased are several foreign nationals from countries including Bangladesh, Nigeria, Mozambique, and Liberia [3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11]. There is disagreement over the exact number of foreign victims, with some sources reporting 12 and others reporting 18 [3, 7, 8, 9, 10]. Many of the foreign victims had come to Delhi for medical treatment [3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11].

Delhi police have launched a criminal investigation and arrested the hotel owner in connection with the fire [3, 10]. The Delhi government announced a citywide crackdown on fire safety and building code violations in hotels and other establishments following the incident [3, 10].

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences to the victims' families and wished a speedy recovery to those injured, saying, "The loss of lives was tragic. I extend my heartfelt condolences to those who have lost their loved ones and wish a speedy recovery to the injured" [1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 11]. Families of the deceased will receive financial assistance of 200,000 rupees (about $2,088) [5].

Authorities continue rescue and investigation efforts as of June 4, with a focus on enforcing fire safety regulations across the city.