Garbage bin near school catches fire
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A major fire broke out on Wednesday afternoon when garbage piled in two bins opposite the Indian Overseas Bank on West Marredpally road went up in flames. It is still unclear whether the fire was set on purpose or it was triggered accidentally. No one was reported injured, but locals criticised the blasé attitude of municipal officials in tending to garbage.
Roadside vendors ran for their life as the flames went up to 10 metres, threatening to engulf nearby structure, too. Broadband Internet and cable TV services to four colonies were disconnected as the fire burnt the overhead cables. The magnitude of the blaze can be gauged from the fact that six fire engines were pressed into service to douse the flames. The bins are located outside a government school-cum-college building. The fire was spotted around 2 pm, just over an hour after the school students had left.
“It could have been a big tragedy had it occurred when the school was on. It is very irresponsible of GHMC to place garbage bins near schools, considering the issue of hygiene and chances of mishaps like this,” Rama Rao, a resident of West Marredpally, said. Praising the timely arrival of the fire tenders, he added, “We are not sure whether the garbage was intentionally set on fire or it was an accident.”
C. Papi Reddy, branch manager of IOB, said they had requested the GHMC on three occasions to shift the bins, but to no avail. “The sight of the flames was scary,” he said. There have been many complaints of late about garbage being burnt in the middle of residential colonies, which can be harmful. Secunderabad resident Deepak Mittal said: “They burn everything from fallen tree leaves, garbage to plastic, and one can see that every day at Ministers Road, PG Road, DV Colony, Necklace Road and other localities.”
GHMC additional commissioner (health/sanitation) L. Vandan Kumar said they are acting seriously on complaints regarding garbage being set afire. Secunderabad deputy municipal commissioner (GHMC) B.V. Gangadhar Reddy said alternative sites would be explored to relocate the garbage bins from near the school at Marredpally.
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