Dilli Haat fire: A massive fire broke out at Dilli Haat, a popular market in INA area, gutting over 30 shops and destroying items worth several crore rupees. Thirteen fire tenders had to be deployed to control the fire.
The Delhi Police on Thursday (May 1) launched an investigation into the fire that broke out at ‘Dilli Haat’ in Delhi’s INA market area, in which at least 30 shops were gutted. Police will examine CCTV footage from multiple areas to determine the cause of the fire on Wednesday (April 30). No casualties were reported from the incident.
“We have launched a detailed investigation into the fire incident that took place at Dilli Haat. We have formed multiple teams,” said a senior police officer. The officer said police are also verifying the response time of the fire teams that rushed to the location.
A massive fire broke out at Dilli Haat, a popular market in INA area, gutting over 30 shops and destroying items worth several crore rupees. Thirteen fire tenders had to be deployed to control the fire. Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra also rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation.
Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra on Thursday assured the affected shopkeepers of compensation and said the government will reallocate shops to them. Mishra’s assurance came after concerns were raised over lapses in fire safety measures at the haat and the alleged delayed response by the Delhi Fire Services. He said that the Dilli Haat will remain closed on Thursday as the Delhi Police has launched a probe into the incident.
“The vendors have been asked to prepare a list of their losses and they will be given compensation and reallocated shops by the government,” he told media. If anyone is found guilty after the police investigation, legal action will be taken against them, Mishra said.
Meanwhile, the affected shopkeepers and vendors alleged that the fire tenders arrived at the spot an hour after the incident, causing major losses to them. “The fire tenders came after all items in my shop were burnt to ashes,” said Manoj Kumar, a cloth vendor at the Dillii Haat.
Kuldeep Kumar, who had a ‘chikankari kurta’ shop at the haat, said that he was saving for his sister’s wedding next year, but he lost everything due to the fire incident. The shopkeepers also claimed that the stalls, for which they pay a hefty rent, are made of plastic and wood.
“They gave us stalls made of such flammable material and we had to risk our lives while trying to protect the items in our shops,” said Mohammed Salauddin, another vendor.
Salauddin claimed that he incurred a loss of about Rs 3 lakh due to the fire.
Some shopkeepers claimed that there were no proper fire safety arrangements in place at the market. “There are no fire safety measures like fire extinguishers in the market. There were a few customers when the blaze broke out. We evacuated the place with the help of guards and we ran with whatever we could save,” a shopkeeper said.
An owner of a Kashmiri shawl shop, where the fire allegedly began, said, “There should be proper fire safety measures in place at the haat. They are charging us a rent of Rs 2 lakh and have provided us with a stall made of fiber.”
The shop owner said he has been a part of the haat for the past eight years. A massive fire broke out at the Dilli Haat in the INA area on Wednesday night, gutting over 30 shops and destroying items worth several crores of rupees. Thirteen fire tenders were deployed to control the fire.
