Train service disrupted, shops gutted in Sealdah South section following fire at Santoshpur station

Kolkata, Sep 16 (IANS) Railway service was disrupted in Sealdah South section of Eastern Railway after a massive fire broke out at Santoshpur station on Tuesday morning. About a dozen shops at the railway station were engulfed in the fire. Four fire engines reached the spot to douse the fire. After two hours, the fire was finally extinguished and train services resumed after that.

According to Eastern Railway officials, the blaze erupted around 7.21 A.M. which halted operations on the busy Sealdah-Budge Budge line. The fire gutted a dozen shops before it was brought under control. Train services resumed around 9.30 A.M. after the situation was normalised.

Sources said, after the fire broke out, locals first made efforts to bring it under control. They used buckets of water but soon the fire went out of control.

Local train services between Ballygunge station and Budge Budge station were disrupted due to the fire. Since there were several shops around the station premises, the fire spread easily. The fire brigade was informed eventually.

The initial suspicion is that the fire started from a gas cylinder in one of the shops.

"The extent of damage caused by the fire is huge. Most of the shops and huts were burnt down as they were made of flammable materials. About 12 shops adjacent to the station were burnt down. However, there were no casualties," said a senior officer of South 24 Parganas district police.

A senior Railway official said, "A shop caught fire next to the Foot Over Bridge on platform number one. We had already identified it as an illegal encroachment. Following today's incident, we will take steps against such shops. We will ensure that only those shops which are not illegal will remain in the station premises."

Later, train services resumed in the Sealdah South section. However, there was a mad rush of people at the Santoshpur station as a large number of them waited for hours to catch a train.

--IANS

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