Plastic unit gutted in Jalpaiguri It took seven hours for four fire engines to douse the flames

The godown in flames at Silpasamitipara in Jalpaiguri in the early hours of Thursday. : Picture by Biplab Basak

TT Bureau   |   Malda, Jalpaiguri   |   01.10.21: A godown stacked with plastic carry bags, paper cups and plates and styrofoam items was gutted in a blaze in Jalpaguri town early on Thursday.

Sources said no casualty or injury had been reported so far. The fire has led to questions whether the godown owner had permission from authorities to store such inflammable items at the unit located in Silpasamitipara, one the densely populated areas of the town.

Locals said they spotted the fire around 1:30am and informed Jalpaiguri Fire Station. It took seven hours for four fire engines to douse the flames.

“The blaze was so intense that glass window panes of a number of adjoining houses have been damaged. The firemen initially used water available with them but eventually, they had to draw water from the Karala river flowing nearby,” said Ram Singh, a local resident.

Dipak Kumar Goyal, the godown owner, reached the spot and claimed that goods worth around Rs 3-4 lakh were stored at the unit. “There is no power connection at the godown. I fail to understand how the fire broke out,” he said.

Fire officials have asked Goyal to produce documents like fire license and other permissions required to run such a storage facility.

“If he fails to furnish appropriate documents, we will take legal steps against him,” said Pradip Sarkar, the divisional fire officer of Jalpaiguri.

Tablets seized

Two suspected smugglers were arrested with around 8,000 yaba tablets from Imamjagir area in Malda on Wednesday.

Police said Ahidur Rahaman and Mehelu Sheikh were held while trying to smuggle the tablets, which are a combination of methamphetamine and caffeine, to Bangladesh.

Charges under NDPS Act have been brought against them, police sources said.