Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday said the fire that broke out at the Serum Institute of India (SII) here last month, in which five persons died, was caused due to short circuit.

Five labourers had died in the fire that broke out in a five-storey building in the SII''s Manjari premises in Pune on January 21. However, the Covishield vaccine production was not impacted due to the blaze.