Two cattle, around Rs 50,000 in cash and all important documents belonging to a family were gutted after a major fire erupted at their residence in Assam's Barpeta on Saturday night, a witness told reporters.

As many as two residences belonging to Sawhit Ali were burnt to the ground in the fire that broke out from an electrical short-circuit.

The incident took place at Alopati Majarchar village in the Mandia tehsil in Assam's Barpeta. According to the information received, two dangling live wires came in contact causing the fire to erupt which soon spread to the two nearby houses.

Losses were estimated to be around Rs 5 lakh with two livestock, cash, important documents and other belongings burnt down.

The incident caused panic in the surrounding region as people gathered to bear witness. A local resident said, "The fire broke out from an electrical short-circuit. The house of Sawhit Ali was burnt down including cash, two cattle and documents were gutted. The incident has taken place due to negligence of the power department."