Gurugram: Monday proved to be a disastrous day for slum dwellers in Gurugram as more than 50 shanties were gutted in a fire. The blaze that broke out in Wazirabad area, not only rendered hundreds of people homeless, but their important documents like identity proofs were also reduced to ashes. There was however, no news of any casualty. The news of fire was reported at 11:30 am and it took more than six fire tenders to bring the situation under control.
The Monday incident followed the series of scenarios where a large number of slums are being gutted in fire. Last month, 150 shanties were gutted after a cylinder blast. It was reported just weeks after the incident at Tigra where there was also a casualty. Worried over the issue of repetition of these incidents, the public authorities have served strict warnings to the land owners. The vacant area of the urban village landlords are used for erecting shanties. The district authorities have also begun taking strict against illegal encroachments on the public area.
Mushrooming of slums have become a major challenge in Gurugram. This is not for the first time when such tragedies have occurred in Gurugram. Earlier too, massive fires have been reported from slums of Sikanderpur and Sector-10. In the case of Sikanderpur, the tragedy occurred two times in quick succession. A 6-year-old boy had lost his life.