Durgapur Bridge suffered damages in New Alipore fire, needs repair: CM

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that the Durgapur Bridge in New Alipore has suffered structural damages due to the devastating fire at a slum beside the bridge close to New Alipore Railway station last Saturday.

“We did a health study of the Durgapur Bridge with Kolkata Police, Fire and Emergency Services department and Transport department jointly post the fire incident. It’s not only the people who were affected by the fire but the bridge too suffered damages,” said Banerjee.

She added that the administration has presently imposed restrictions on movement beside the bridge. “We have to repair the bridge and need to spend a good amount for the same. We have recently repaired the Majerhat Bridge that had caved in,” she added.

Banerjee cautioned the common people against making indiscriminate bonfires, particularly in congested areas like slums where a small spark can trigger a big fire. Such bonfires should be lit at a reasonable distance away from human habitation and should be put off after the purpose is served.

“The slum that caught fire was located on Railways land. I will advise the Railways to keep an eye on mushrooming of such slums here and there. The immense heat generated from the fire on Saturday affected the structure of the bridge. The state will try its best to compensate for the damage suffered because of the fire,” she said.

The Saturday night fire at the New Alipore slum singed white goods in multiple flats adjacent to the slum and forced residents of the buildings to spend a sleepless night outside their homes. They pleaded with civic and police authorities to keep the illegal settlers away from their homes to avoid further trouble.