Funds crunch hits fire-fighting machinery

BATALA, Dec 1: The financial crunch being faced by the Batala Municipal Council has adversely affected the fire-fighting machinery, posin...

BATALA, Dec 1: The financial crunch being faced by the Batala Municipal Council has adversely affected the fire-fighting machinery, posing a serious threat to the life and property of the citizens of this industrial and historic city.

The fire brigade being managed by the municipal council is facing scarcity of vehicles, manpower, buildings and other equipment due to the funds crunch.Though the major population is living in the walled city, the fire brigade does not have a single fire tender which can go into the narrow lanes of the city. The fire brigade has one light fire tender vehicle and one medium fire tender vehicle which were specifically purchased for use in the walled city in case a fire broke out, but these are lying unused due to lack of funds for repair.

The fire brigade has two heavy vehicles as fire tenders. One of them is a Leyland 1984 and the other is a TATA 1995. The Leyland fire tender is not working properly as it is devoid of a single foot of hose pipe. On the other hand, the TATA fire tender only has a 700 feet-long hose pipe which is insufficient as the tender should have a 2000 feet-long hose pipe.

The municipal council had ordered the purchase of 3,000 feet hose pipe in 1995 but had refused to get delivery from the transporters saying the hose pipe was substandard. This was just an excuse as senior officers wanted to get their commission from the supplying agency who had refused to give it to them, it was alleged. Since then, the council has not purchased a single foot of hose pipe.

At present the municipal council has only one fire tender which is working properly while the remaining three are lying useless for want of repair and other reasons.

Interestingly, the council had to hire a fire tender from the Municipal Corporation of Amritsar on the eve of Diwali but fortunately there was not a single fire incident in or around the city.

The MC has also not purchased Mechanical Foam Powder MFP since 1995 and neither has it purchased Dry Chemical Powder DCP used to control fires in godowns and power stations.

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The fire brigade is also understaffed. At present there are 25 employees which include 15 firemen, four leading firemen, five drivers and one fire officer.

Similarly, the fire brigade does not have its own building. Its building in Nehru Gate which demolished in 1981. The brigade is now housed in the MC office and it has no proper garage for the fire tenders.

Meanwhile, the council authorities have written to the deputy commissioner Gurdaspur, to provide sufficient funds for the fire brigade.