Gutted Vishal Mega Mart building declared unsafe

Tribune News Service

Mohali, March 1

It took almost 18 hours to control the fire that broke out at Vishal Mega Mart in Phase V here yesterday.

The Mohali administration, which admitted that the fire could be brought under control only after the a team of the Indian Air Force took charge of the firefighting operations last evening, has decided to conduct a high-level fact-finding inquiry into the incident.

Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Aashika Jain, who has been officiating as Mohali Deputy Commissioner, said the order of the inquiry would be issued tomorrow and its report sent to the Punjab Chief Minister’s office.

Meanwhile, the administration has declared the three-storey building housing the department store as unsafe and sealed the premises.

“Nobody is allowed to enter the premises as the building has been declared unsafe. The entire showroom has been cordoned off and the local police have been ordered to keep vigil at the spot round the clock,” said Jain.

She added that the fire that broke out in the basement and the ground floor of the store could be brought under control around 2 am today.

The basement of the store is said to be submerged under three-foot water. “The team of the Indian Air Force, led by Capt Manoj Rana, played a crucial role in controlling the fire. Several structures on the premises had to be razed to make way to the basement, where the fire had broken out last morning. The IAF team took over the charge of firefighting operations last evening,” said Jain.

Apart from that a team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) was also summoned by the administration. “I have come to know that fire safety norms were being flouted in the showroom and the Fire Department had already served a notice on the store around six months ago. A separate inquiry will be conducted and appropriate action, if needed, will be taken against the store management,” she said.

According to sources, more than 30 fire engines were pressed into service and these made over 100 rounds during the firefighting operations, which was supervised by Mohali SDM Jagdeep Sehgal. “As a precautionary measure, the fire engines continue to be stationed at the site as cooling process is under way. The building has been cordoned off to restrict public access as the structural safety of the building is yet to be ascertained. Duty magistrates have been for controlling the situation on the ground,” said Jain.

Units to be re-inspected for fire safety violations

The local Fire Department had recently found that nearly 70 per cent commercial and industrial units are flouting fire safety norms in Mohali. According to a senior official of the department, notices have been served on the violators twice or thrice, still several businessmen seem least bothered about it. Aashika Jain, officiating as Mohali Deputy Commissioner, said soon all premises that had been served notices for fire safety violations would be again inspected. “In case violations are found in those premises, strict action will be taken under the law,” she said.