Markets or death traps?

The damage caused by the fire has been colossal with the small cloth traders being thrown on to the street. However, a closer look into the situations prevailing in the markets, like the one which was burnt to ashes, will surely reveal that the risk factors present in those places are far too many. To begin with, there is no fire fighting mechanism available in the markets catering to the needs of ordinary people. Then the structural flaws of these markets, with many alleys and blind alleys, make them highly susceptible to fire. There is constant rush of people which aggravates the risk of heavy casualties in case of an accident. Finally, highly combustible materials are stacked up in the markets and the electricity wires are often found coiled up, or very indifferently maintained. It seems the structures that house markets for the people of the middle and low-income groups are plagued with all the risk factors as far as fire is concerned. The markets are veritable death traps.

The fire fighters' ability to quickly respond to such crises is still an elusive goal, thanks to a host of inhibitory factors. Things must improve vastly in this area.

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We believe the incident will serve a notice on the DCC, DESA, fire experts and town planners as it has exposed, at a very high cost, the inadequacy of the plan to have markets in structures having none of the safety arrangements needed in a crowded place. They should put the heads together to develop a comprehensive fire prevention and fighting strategy for the markets and all such places. Let this not be confined to words only. What is needed is tangible action to avoid such tragic loss of life and property.