Coimbatore: An elderly woman died after her clothes caught fire while she was lighting a lamp in the puja room at her residence near Peelamedu here on Saturday.The Peelamedu police identified the deceased as B Nirmala, 69, a resident of VKR Nagar. According to a police officer, the incident occurred after she returned home after morning walk. “Nirmala and her husband Balraj went out for a walk in the morning. Nirmala later told him that she was going home to light a lamp in the puja room. When Balraj returned home shortly after, he heard Nirmala screaming from inside the house. He, along with neighbours, rushed in but only to see her on fire, with severe burn injuries all over her body. They poured water to extinguish the flames and rescued her,” a police officer said. Nirmala was admitted to a private hospital, where she succumbed to her burn injuries on Sunday without responding to treatment. The Peelamedu police registered a case based on Balraj’s complaint and began an investigation. Preliminary inquiries indicate that her clothes caught fire while she was carrying a lit lamp to the puja room.
