The recent fire accident at Toli Chowki is a perfect example of how the urban civic administration is all about adhocism.
The fire occurred at a storage facility near Yousuf Tekri in Toli Chowki on Friday, where the lubricant used in motor vehicles was stored in large containers. While no casualty has been reported, its proximity to a petrol pump could have resulted in a disaster. It was averted by the alacrity of the workers there who rolled out the barrels and emptied them on the road.
The road from Toli Chowki to Rethi Bowli was covered in an oil slick that stretched from Yousuf Tekri on one side to Rumaan restaurant on Saturday. The spilled oil was covered with sand which quickly turned into dust. The police diverted traffic but it was no solution for residents of Moghal Residency, Al Nizam Colony, and other residential colonies in the area. Even on Monday evening, as the traffic was allowed to move on the road it was covered with a cloud of dust.
Officials under the condition of anonymity informed that the warehouse had no permission to function as the area was residential in nature and thickly populated.
Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), the authority which needs to take action against unauthorised commercial establishments, laid down its arms after initial posturing a year ago.
After a series of fire accidents in which many lives were lost, GHMC had initiated action against commercial establishments with potential for fire mishaps. About 1,000 notices were served from the GHMC’s zonal offices on the ‘Red Category’ establishments, asking them to move outside the city, into area demarcated as industrial zones, within three months. Some 200 notices were served from the Enforcement, Vigilance & Disaster Management wing of the GHMC.
The ‘Red Category’ establishments include in their definition, all warehouses that store scrap, plastic, fire crackers, oil, and gunny bags, apart from timber depots. Majority of these where fire mishaps occurred were amid thickly populated residential areas.
The non-red category establishments too were issued notices for provision of fire fighting equipment and fire escapes within the premises. More notices were served for clearance of basements and staircases.
A year has passed, yet no action has been taken against the warehouses which were given notices.
“The notices were issued when D. S. Lokesh Kumar was the GHMC Commissioner. Later, he got shifted, and so did all the zonal commissioners. Since then, the notices have been gathering dust,” an official shared.
