Delhi: The Delhi Fire Department has decided to deploy fire tenders at 22 spots across the city as a precautionary measure. The officials stated that these fire tenders will be put in place from Sunday evening to midnight.
According to reports, an internal committee, headed by the chief fire officer, was formed to identify 50 mishap-prone spots in the national capital to deploy mobile fire tenders.
The 22 spots where fire tenders would deployed are Tilak Nagar, Lajpat Nagar Central Market, Bara Tooti Chowk, Lal Kuan Chowk, Lahori Gate, Nangloi, South Extension, Sonia Vihar, Mehrauli, Ghitorni Metro Station, Ali Pur, Rani Bagh Market, DTC Deport Katran Market, Gandhi Nagar market, Mahipalpur Chowk, Sangam Vihar, Mundka Metro Station, Dera Goan Mor, Azad Market Chowk, Jaipur Golden Hospital, Paper Market Gazipur and Yamuna Vihar.
Earlier, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena held a meeting with the Delhi Fire Service to evaluate preparations for Diwali and also took a number of initiatives to strengthen the city's capacity to combat fires.
Further, Saxena also instructed the department to curb the response time for rescue calls to two to three minutes from the current eight to 16 minutes.
Besides water tenders, motorcycles fitted with fire-fighting equipment will be deployed at five other locations with narrow and congested lanes. These are Ambedkar Nagar, Chandni Chowk, Sabji Mandi Ghanta Ghar, Paharganj Shiela Cinema and Gandhi Nagar.
Despite a complete ban on firecrackers, the department received over 152 fire-related calls on Diwali last year although it was 25 per cent lower than in 2020 and the lowest in 15 years, fire officials said.
The fire services control room usually responds to the maximum number of calls on Diwali, they said. This year, around 2,900 firefighters will be on duty to tackle emergencies.
(With inputs from PTI)
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