It is not the only case of devastating fire in a city slums. Such fire often destroys shanties in slum areas in the city round the year raising questions as to why slum dwellers are repeatedly facing the inferno losing lives and making them penniless time and again. Only five days ago another fire broke out in a slum at Shahjahanpur Railway Colony killing a man as he was sleeping inside. On October 4 another fire destroyed 68 shanties at Boubazar slum in Hazaribagh area. Seven fire fighting units dodged the fire in which most dwellers lost their belongings.
What surprises many is that locals and fire fighters blame electric short circuit, burning stove and cigarette as probable reasons of such fire. These are guesswork, unilaterally putting the blame on the victims. But many also want to dispute such causes as whether they are accident or man-made incidents. Many believe local goons who control such slums on regular payment of rent may have their hands to evacuate the land to force dwellers to renegotiate their right to dwelling with fresh advances. Powerful people may have also hands in such fire to make the slum empty to sell land or build new shopping or residential housings. In most cases it is the powerful people holding such land under their possession in the city renting to slum dwellers. They drive away them when it is so needed and setting fire is a most common practice to evacuate land.
What makes all so frustrated in the face of indifference on the part of the government is that it is not functioning in the interest of the people. Helpless people are victims of negligence and greed of law breaking officials. Just because there is no worth opposition party in the country, that should not mean that government has no responsibility to the suffering people.
