At least 230 firecracker shops in Faridabad were gutted in a huge fire that broke out on Tuesday evening. The fire broke out in Dussehra Ground, one of the few authorised places in Faridabad for selling Diwali crackers. Over 20 people are said to be injured in the incident but no causalities have been reported so far.
Nearly a dozen fire tenders were pressed into service. Fire tenders from private firms in Faridabad, Ballabgarh and Palwal were also roped in. The cause of the fire is still not known but prima facie it appears that a short circuit in the generator had led to the inferno. Over a dozen private vehicles parked near the place were destroyed in the blaze as well.
Two hundred stalls were given licenses to sell crackers in the Dusshera ground. Many of the sellers were decorating their stalls and transporting crackers there. There were also a few buyers at the ground. One fire tender was already at the spot when the fire broke out. Five places, including one in Ballabgarh, were given clearance by the district administration to sell crackers. Almost all the stalls were set up with either polythene or cloth sheds. The crackers were put on wooden tables which helped the fire spread rapidly. The people present at the spot claimed that the fire suddenly broke out from shop number 4 or 5 and started spreading.
“It was a notified ground and was open from all four sides so that people could exit easily. A DD entry of the incident has been made at our police station. Police force has been deployed in the area so that people in and around the area do not panic. No casualty has been reported so far,” said Commissioner of Police (Faridabad) AS Chawla.