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Burrabazaar fire finally contained

Kolkata Bureau

Traders scuffle with police after rumours of demolition spread

Photo: SUSHANTA PATRONOBISH

Taking stock: CPI(M) Polit Bureau members Sitaram Yechury, Brinda Karat and other party leaders visiting the Burrabazaar area on Wednesday. —

Kolkata: The fire that raged through the Burrabazaar area, the central wholesale trading hub of the city, since the early hours of Saturday was finally contained late on Tuesday evening.

While parts of the building continued to smoulder, the flames that had ravaged the multi-storeyed Nandaram market complex and several adjoining buildings had died down.

Fire fighters had struggled for more than 90 hours to douse the flames that kept on gathering strength as plastic goods, cotton and synthetic cloth materials and tarpaulin sheets stored in over 2,000 shops burnt to ashes.

Tempers ran high among agitated traders and a scuffle ensued between them and the police based on reports that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation was planning to demolish a part of the building. The police lathicharged the crowd and the Rapid Action Force personnel had to be deployed to establish order.

Polit Bureau members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Sitaram Yechury and Brinda Karat, along with party MP Mohammad Selim, visited the site on Wednesday. Mr. Yechury said it was not only a major disaster but crores of rupees had been lost. The party would submit a report to the State government and appeal for rehabilitation.

Both the Trinamool Congress and the BJP have accused the CPI (M) of conspiring and destroying the building to facilitate promoters.

B.K. Birla’s gesture

Basant Kumar Birla, one of the three seniors of the Birla clan, has begun contacting various city industrialists for rebuilding the lives of the traders who lost everything in the fire. Talking to The Hindu, the 87-year-old Mr. Birla said he was moved to tears after visiting the site on Tuesday with his 83-year-old wife Sarala, who was slightly hurt in the melee.

He said that while he earlier planned to donate Rs. 1 crore, after seeing the plight of the 800-odd traders, many of whom would now have difficulty feeding their families, he raised it to Rs. 2 crore.

“From TV reports and our own information we knew it was a bad situation, but we had not imagined it was this bad till we made that visit against the wish of our executives and friends,” a moved Mr. Birla said adding that the site was only two furlongs away from the Birla Buildings — the corporate headquarters of the family — and he felt restless without extending a helping hand. “The fire has been put out, but the traders have neither stocks, nor any cash — how will they live,” Mr. Birla wondered.

He said he would ideally like to raise about Rs. 4 crore and he had already spoken to fellow city-based industrialists like R.P. Goenka, B.M. Khaitan, Jit Pal, C.K. Somani, R.S. Agarwal and H.M. Bangur. “All of them are keen on contributing,” he said adding that he proposed to call at least 30 more people. “We have consulted our lawyers and decided that a separate account would be opened for this.” Company officials said a steering committee of six people, including a director of a group company and social workers, was being set up.

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