CM orders CID probe into Mangalahat fire incident

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe into the incident of fire at Mangalahat in Howrah which gutted hundreds of shops late on Thursday night.

Banerjee assured the shop owners that the state government will help them by all possible means.

She said: “There is a dispute in the land. Nobody knows who owns the land. I have asked the District Magistrate to conduct an inquiry. If FIR is lodged, police will take action.”

She further announced that the state government will provide Rs 5 lakh loan to each of the shop owners under the Bhabishyat scheme. The Chief Minister also constituted a committee consisting of MLA Arup Roy, fire brigade officials, Disaster Management Group (DMG) officials and police.

Late on Thursday night, a massive fire broke out at the Mangalahat in Howrah. A total of 18 fire tenders were pressed into action in phases to douse the flames that gutted the shops on about 12 bigha of land.

The fire had spread to other shops in the market due to the presence of inflammable objects. While dousing the flames, firefighters faced trouble due to a shortage of water.

As there were no water sources nearby, initially firefighters used water from a sewerage line to douse the fire. Later water was extracted from the Howrah Hospital.

After almost five hours, firefighters were able to control the fire within a short radius. The blaze was completely doused around 8 am.

Local businessmen alleged that the market was set on fire deliberately. After hearing this, Banerjee assured the businessmen that an investigation will be done by the CID to find out if any sabotage was done.