Haphazard electrical wires, wayward parking, and encroachment on the streets all make the city's historical Chowk Bazaar the riskiest fire zone in the state capital.
Short circuits are the primary cause of fires in the city; they require an immediate response from firemen, who must gain clear access to the location to control the blaze.
An organically grown market that dates back to the princely era, the Chowk Bazaar today is primarily accessed from Itwara, Peer Gate, Jumerati, Ghoda Nakkas, Ibrahimpura, Budhwara, and Laxmi Talkies.Of these places, only the Ibrahimpura and Jumerati areas offer designated car parking facilities, with a multi-level parking lot opposite the old Sabzi Mandi, a relatively smaller parking area at Mufti House, and a parking space near Aliganj.
People entering the marketplace from any of the other access points normally drive through the labyrinthine bylanes on their two-wheelers, adding to the prevailing chaos.In a bid to attract customers, traders also contribute to the melee by extending their shopfronts into the already congested streets.The periphery of the bazaar is no less crowded, with handcarts selling fruits and a host of other items encroaching into traffic space with the blessings of the civic body, which licences them to do so through its Tahbazaari scheme.
Fire Officer Saurabh Patel says, "There will always be a high possibility of a major accident here unless the roads are widened or we are provided with proper access routes. We do not have administrative powers to take action.
Perhaps something will be done in the future, but for now, the situation remains dire."Patel confides that he has often thought about how quickly a large fire in these areas could spiral out of control due to a lack of access."The fire department has acquired smaller fire engines and also motorbikes mounted with fire-fighting capabilities, but these may not be enough to control a large fire," he adds.Typically, a fire-fighting exercise in the city employs fire tenders and backup water tankers that ferry water to the operation site.
A moderate fire-fighting exercise can require up to a dozen large trucks to be parked in the vicinity of the blaze, while several others ferry water to the site. A near impossibility at the Chowk.
Though the fire department regularly checks water pumps and the few hydrants that have been installed in the area, Patel says that blame is eventually pinned on his department in the absence of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to be followed in fire emergencies.
He laments the lack of civic participation in the establishment of safety protocols.His concern is understandable, as the politically significant trading class that virtually runs the Chowk has stonewalled several administrative efforts to free the Bazaar of the chaos that many say adds to the old-world charm of this relic from the city's heritage.
