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Nandini Oza
VADODARA, Sept 16: It's Ganesh Utsav. And with more than 1000 idols installed in almost every nook and corner of the city, what surely attracts one's attention are the lavish decorations and the huge pandals.
But what goes unnoticed is that the majority of the structures set up around the installation sites are in direct violation of the guidelines issued by the Vadodara Fire Brigade.
The guidelines clearly state that the decoration gate should be at least 15-feet in height and 10-feet broad -- for the fire tenders to enter in case of fire -- and that the lighting wires should not be loose. And more importantly, the structures should not impede vehicular traffic.
But at a majority of the places Express Newsline found that either the gates had been installed at a lower height or the pandals were impeding traffic.
Several senior fire brigade personnel, requesting anonymity, termed such places ``unsafe''. Even Chief Fire Officer Mahendra K Desai agreed. ``It may not be dangerous but is certainly unsafe,'' he admitted.
Thanking providence, that no mishap had occurred so far, Desai said,``In the past, our firemen received electric shocks while removing the series of decoration.'' Last year when there was fire in Khatri Pole and Baranpura localities, they had to bring down the entry gate and remove the lightings, a fire brigade personnel recalled.
In Kharchikar's lane in Raopura, vehicular traffic has been clearly impeded. ``But we have not blocked the road,'' claimed Chandrakant Bhonsle, a member of the Raopura Yuvak Mandal, celebrating the festival. If the fire tender wants to come, it can come from other side, he pointed out. And although he seemed aware of guidelines, he was quick to pass the blame on the electricians.
While Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Administration) H S Patel claimed that it was the police department which could take action, Bhonsle claimed,``If your terms are good with the police, the permission is granted''.
Incidentally, this reporter came across two instances of minor fire in Salatwada and Shripadnagar in Karelibaug, on Monday, which was extinguished after people threw water on it.
Amol Surve of Shri Ganesh Yuvak Mandal in Kaasar Falia maintained that the even youths helped the Fire Brigade personnel in case of fire. But it is impossible for the police to lay restriction on all, his friend claimed and added that they weren't informed about the height restriction. ``We have been only told about loudspeaker timings and that no passes can be issued,'' said Surve.
Despite the fact that the road has been blocked, Sanjay Patni of Wadiwadi in the city claimed the traffic was flowing smoothly. ``If lives of people is at risk, we help fire brigade to break the gates,'' he claimed. One of the organisers said that it was difficult to maintain the height as the pole where lighting was done is only 12 feet in height.
Lighting is also at a low height in Pratap Marghani Pole. When questioned about Fire Brigade guidelines, former councillor Niranjan Thakore argued that even otherwise there was encroachment in Mangal Bazaar area, which prevented smooth entry of fire tenders.
According to Patel, at the most extremely troublesome structures could be brought down with the help of the police. When contacted Assistant Police Commissioner (Special branch) C P Chaudhary admitted that the police department had received a letter but said in spite of timely instructions, organisers ignored them.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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