Fire in shopping complex, major tragedy averted

LUCKNOW : A major tragedy was averted when fire broke out in a plastic products godown in the congested Mumtaz shopping complex in Aminabad on Thursday afternoon. Fire fighters managed to douse the flames after a three-hour-long effort.

Fire tenders could enter the narrow lanes , without any delay, as it was the weekly closure of the market, said locals.

An eyewitness, Saurabh Kumar, said some locals informed the fire services control room after seeing smoke emanating from the first floor of the shopping complex around 1.30 pm. He said the fire broke out in the godown owned by one Hasmat Ali. Fire officials said initial probe suggested that a short circuit triggered the blaze. Jaspreet Singh, a trader and social activist, said a major fire broke out in Mumtaz Market in 2016 while similar incidents were reported in the Pratap Market in 2018 and 2013, but still no lessons were learnt from it. He is also running a campaign on social networking sites — I Change Aminabad— to decongest the market.