200 shops in unaffected part of Bagri Market reopen minus fire cert
Zeeshan Javed | TNN | Mar 14, 2019, 08:27 IST
Officials in the fire department as well as the Kolkata Municipal Corporation pointed out that the traders had... Read MoreKOLKATA: Almost 200 shops in the unaffected part of Bagri Market, a portion of which was destroyed in a fire last year, have reopened though a final inspection and no-objection certificates from the fire department are still pending.
Officials in the fire department as well as the Kolkata Municipal Corporation pointed out that the traders had chosen to reopen their shops now, knowing they would not face any pressure either from the administration or any political party as general elections were round the corner and no politician would want to upset the business community in the city. Seemingly riding on the conviction that they would face very little resistance, if at all, owing to the elections, owners of almost 200 shops in the unaffected part of the market have resumed business in the past few days. These shops added up to 25% of the 800 establishments in the unaffected portions. More have been gearing up to reopen their shops by the weekend. According to a member of the Bagri Market Central Kolkata Traders’ Welfare Association, almost 80% shops have reopened in H Block and almost 40% in B Block. “Almost all the shops on the ground floor have also resumed business,” he said.
Though the traders have been keeping it low-key to avoid unnecessary attention, customers have already started flocking to Bagri Market, which used to be one of the busiest retail as well as wholesale hub in the central business district till the calamity struck.
After the fire, experts from IIT Roorkee had carried out inspections and studied the documents, following which they had conveyed to the KMC that they had no objection to shops in the unaffected portion reopening, provided minor repairs were carried out and the fire department gave them fire-safety certificates after ensuring the establishments had installed anti-fire mechanism. But close to 200 shops in Block A, which were completely gutted, will remain shut till they are overhauled and the fire department issues an NOC.
Currently, only one of the eight gates of the market are open. Other gates would be opened only after the no-objection certificate was obtained, said the traders. “Customers have been allowed inside because they had been facing problems in travelling to the alternative venues in the city, where the Bagri traders had set up their shops temporarily,” said a trader, who has been in the market for over four decades. “We had no other option but to reopen our shops here because despite spending so much money on renovating the place and installing fire-fighting measures, the fire department has not issued a no-objection certificate yet. More than 50,000 people depend on this market and we can’t keep them without a livelihood for an indefinite period.”
A senior civic buildings official said, “We have forwarded our opinion to the fire department. As IIT Roorkee has no problems with the unaffected portion reopening, we also don’t have any problem and have conveyed our decision to the fire department. If the fire department is satisfied with the safety preparedness of the shops, they can issue the no-objection certificate.”
The government shut the market in September last year, after the blaze, which raged on for over 82 hours, destroyed 200 shops. The traders were told to make the market fire safe before they would be allowed to resume business. The administration, including the fire department, the KMC and the police, extended all possible help as traders renovated the market and installed fire-fighting measures. “We have met senior officials of CESC who have suggested we will have to procure a no-objection certificate from the fire department before they can restore power supply to the market. We have undertaken all fire-fighting measures suggested by the fire department. We have also completed all the formalities online to secure the no-objection certificate. We are waiting for the fire department to inspect the market and issue the certificate,” said Debabrata Das, secretary of the association.
Officials in the fire department as well as the Kolkata Municipal Corporation pointed out that the traders had chosen to reopen their shops now, knowing they would not face any pressure either from the administration or any political party as general elections were round the corner and no politician would want to upset the business community in the city. Seemingly riding on the conviction that they would face very little resistance, if at all, owing to the elections, owners of almost 200 shops in the unaffected part of the market have resumed business in the past few days. These shops added up to 25% of the 800 establishments in the unaffected portions. More have been gearing up to reopen their shops by the weekend. According to a member of the Bagri Market Central Kolkata Traders’ Welfare Association, almost 80% shops have reopened in H Block and almost 40% in B Block. “Almost all the shops on the ground floor have also resumed business,” he said.
Though the traders have been keeping it low-key to avoid unnecessary attention, customers have already started flocking to Bagri Market, which used to be one of the busiest retail as well as wholesale hub in the central business district till the calamity struck.
After the fire, experts from IIT Roorkee had carried out inspections and studied the documents, following which they had conveyed to the KMC that they had no objection to shops in the unaffected portion reopening, provided minor repairs were carried out and the fire department gave them fire-safety certificates after ensuring the establishments had installed anti-fire mechanism. But close to 200 shops in Block A, which were completely gutted, will remain shut till they are overhauled and the fire department issues an NOC.
Currently, only one of the eight gates of the market are open. Other gates would be opened only after the no-objection certificate was obtained, said the traders. “Customers have been allowed inside because they had been facing problems in travelling to the alternative venues in the city, where the Bagri traders had set up their shops temporarily,” said a trader, who has been in the market for over four decades. “We had no other option but to reopen our shops here because despite spending so much money on renovating the place and installing fire-fighting measures, the fire department has not issued a no-objection certificate yet. More than 50,000 people depend on this market and we can’t keep them without a livelihood for an indefinite period.”
A senior civic buildings official said, “We have forwarded our opinion to the fire department. As IIT Roorkee has no problems with the unaffected portion reopening, we also don’t have any problem and have conveyed our decision to the fire department. If the fire department is satisfied with the safety preparedness of the shops, they can issue the no-objection certificate.”
The government shut the market in September last year, after the blaze, which raged on for over 82 hours, destroyed 200 shops. The traders were told to make the market fire safe before they would be allowed to resume business. The administration, including the fire department, the KMC and the police, extended all possible help as traders renovated the market and installed fire-fighting measures. “We have met senior officials of CESC who have suggested we will have to procure a no-objection certificate from the fire department before they can restore power supply to the market. We have undertaken all fire-fighting measures suggested by the fire department. We have also completed all the formalities online to secure the no-objection certificate. We are waiting for the fire department to inspect the market and issue the certificate,” said Debabrata Das, secretary of the association.
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