No negligence behind fire in Mumbai Naval Dockyard: Officer

The Navy has said there was no "negligence" on its part in the fire that broke out in a building in high-security Naval Dockyard in Mumbai on November 3.

"I can assure you that there was no negligence. Damage was caused because of the material with which the building had been constructed," Western Naval Command Chief Vice-Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi said in Mumbai.

The building (Admiral Superintendent Department) is 150 years old and made up of wooden structures, and the severity of the blaze was high, he said.

"Everything (in the building) was made up of inflammable material. There was no damage on the ground floor, but the first floor suffered extensive damage due to wood structures and severity of the fire," the Vice-Admiral stated.

A report from the Board of Enquiry, set up by the Navy to ascertain the damage, is still awaited, he added.