Death at loose ends

What was just a refugee colony in the 50s is now easily one of the most crowded spaces in the capital. The Lajpat Nagar central market has more than 70 shops and innumerable street vendors. Three children,all under the age of 16,have died of electrocution after coming into contact with low-lying high-tension wires or unshielded transformers over the past eight years.

“In recent years,high-tension wires with rubber casings have been installed,but every other day,cases of people getting electric shocks are reported from the area,” a shopkeeper in central market said.

He said the likelihood of someone from the BSES office coming and repairing the line or pulling up the wires dangling low was nil.

The problem in the area,as many shopkeepers admit,are the illegal connections in the market. Most of them use hooks to draw electricity from the nearest pole,which goes unchecked.

Lajpat Nagar Residents’ Welfare Association president Vijay Arora said the residents had first reported the incidents after the death of a ten-year-old child in January 2010. “There is no grievance redressal cell. We went to the BSES office in Nehru Place but no action has been taken till date,” he said.

BSES RESPONSE

There are no electricity cables hanging low rooftops here. In certain places,residents have illegally extended their balconies thereby coming closer to the wires. “This is a violation of the minimum clearance required under CEA Safety Regulations,2010,and the Electricity Act,2003.

GANDHI NAGAR

Shopkeepers here claim that this is the largest textile market in South Asia. Shops are haphazardly packed in narrow alleyways,their bales of cloth often tumbling out in unruly fashion. People have heard about a man being electrocuted in Green Park a couple of weeks ago and are wary of the open wires in the market.

These fears were compounded after an 11,000 Volt transformer was installed in Shanti Mohallah,the main entryway to the market. The new one was installed after a transformer kept inside a building,caught fire last month. At least three shops,situated a stones’ throw away from the transformer,have shut shop as a precautionary measure.

Shyam Sunder Aggarwal,president of the cloth merchants association,said,“There was a wedding in the area and a short circuit led to the transformer going up in flames. The power supply was cut off and,thankfully,no one was injured. This transformer was installed here as an emergency measure and they (BSES personnel) told us it would be shifted inside after the building was repaired within a week. It’s been a month now and this is still here in the open.” People walk through this alleyway almost brushing against the transformer and cycles trudge by carrying heavy loads. Aggarwal said he calls BSES officials every other day and is assured that it will be shifted soon.

BSES RESPONSE

In a recent fire in the area which gutted several shops,the BSES transformer was also damaged. We installed a stand-by transformer and restored power supply immediately. Since the area has narrow and congested lanes,the standby transformer was placed in the only available space.

BHAGIRATH PALACE

In December last year,two buildings in Bhagirath Palace,Asia’s largest market for electrical goods,caught fire. It took a team of 250 firemen almost two days to douse the flames,which was reportedly triggered by a short circuit. Barely a month later,another blaze took place here,this time triggered by a spark from an electrical wire.

Such incidents may make many wary of operating out of such an area,but for shopkeepers here,it’s just another day at work.

“Minor sparks,short circuits,fires due to faulty wiring — all have been happening in the complex for years. It’s something we have learnt to live with,” Anil Kumar,who runs an electrical shop in the market,said.

Loose cables and dangling high voltage cables have been the cause of most accidents in the market over the past few years. “A few years ago,we were told the cables will be shifted underground,but nothing has been done till date,” Ajay Sharma,president of Delhi Electrical Traders Association (DETA),said.

BSES RESPONSE

The area too congested and has narrow lanes. Getting adequate space for expanding power is in itself a challenge. Power theft and over-loading are common issues here – the latter due to illegal tapping.

AZADPUR

Come monsoon,and this vegetable market,the largest in Asia,has numerous problems to contend with,the most prominent being the threat posed by dangling electric cables.

Shop owners said that its just sheer luck that no one here has been electrocuted here. “We have raised this issue with the market association,but nobody pays attention to these things until some untoward incident happens. Some of the wires hang very low and when we transport vegetables in our carts,they often come into touch with wires. With the mud and slush around,it is really tough to balance the trolleys and also avoid the wires,” a shopkeeper in A-Block of the market said.

Azadpur was declared a market of national importance in 2004 by the government. “If you look at the power cable criss-crossing here,it looks like any unauthorised market. We are a well-regulated DDA market— sometimes,even projected as a tourist destination – but we cannot ensure a respectable underground power supply system here,” a shopkeeper from C-Block said.

KAROL BAGH

The shopkeepers in Karol Bagh’s Gaffar Market are a prudent lot. In order to protect their shops from the dangers of accidents caused due to loose cables and dangling electric wires,most owners have started keeping fire extinguishers in their shops.

“Every now and then,one can see sparks coming off electric poles. Transformer fires are common in this area,and so are those caused due to short circuits. In the last six years,fires due to faulty wiring burned down two shops in the area. We have to protect our shops if the authorities won’t,” J S Wadhwa,a local shop owner,said.

Short-circuit fires are a perennial problem for the owners,made worse during the monsoon.

BSES RESPONSE

In the run-up to the 2010 Commonwealth Games,the BSES had shifted its electricity cables underground in the Karol Bagh and Paharganj areas. The jungle of overhead cables has been shifted underground and state- of-the-art compact packaged sub-stations installed.