A fire broke out at Rajapur Bazar in Sarankhola upazila of Bagerhat and burnt down 22 shops. The fire damaged property worth around Tk 1.5 crore, locals claimed. Two teams of fire service from Sharankhola and Morelganj tried for about two hours and brought the fire under control. Pulin Vaidya, a wholesaler and retailer in the market, alone has lost about half a crore Tk, he said.
Advocate Amirul Alam Milon, MP from Bagerhat 4 constituency, immediately announced Tk 50,000 to the affected traders and Tk 5,000 each to Upazila Parishad Chairman Raihan Uddin Shant.
Bagerhat 4 constituency MP Advocate Amirul Alam Milon, Upazila Parishad Chairman Raihan Uddin Shant, Sarankhola Police Officer-in-Charge Md Ikram Hossain and Upazila Awami League General Secretary Asaduzzaman Milon visited the spot. Never before has there been such a big fire in Sharankhola Upazila. Hundreds of people gathered at the scene to witness the blaze. Six days ago, on May 20, the house of Masum Biswas, an easybike driver of Badhal village in the upazila, was gutted in a fire. The amount of loss is about 10 lakh Tk, family members informed.
Rajapur Bazar Committee President Moinul Islam Tipu and General Secretary Kabir Hossain Talukder said 22 shops in the market were burnt to ashes. The amount of loss will be about one and a half crore Tk. As the bridge adjacent to Amaragachia Bazaar was at risk, an immediate fire service vehicle had to speed up to reach the spot. That is why more shops have been burnt to ashes and the amount of damage has increased. If the bridge had not been at risk, the damage would have been one-third. The owners of the burnt shops are: Pulin Vaidya, Selim, Hossain Hang, Sumon, Badal, Jasim Uddin, Bhabatosh, Billal, Munshi, Dr. Badsha, Sabuj, Alamgir, Riyadul, Mukta, Arif, A. Rahman, Manik, Dulal. Chandra, Matiar Rahman, AH Rahim, Matiur Rahman Mridha.
Md. Golam Chharwar, Deputy Assistant Director, Fire Service, Bagerhat, told that after receiving the news at 5:15 am, the fire service team of Sharankhola reached the spot and informed me of the seriousness of the situation. After trying for about 2 hours, the fire came under control. If two units of the fire service did not work, at least another 5 crore Tk worth property would have been lost. The road bridge to reach the spot was dangerous and it was delayed. If the bridges are not rebuilt quickly, such damage cannot be avoided.
Advocate Amirul Alam Milon, an MP from Bagerhat 4 constituency, told this correspondent while inspecting the scene of the fire, "I rushed to the spot as soon as I got the news. I have decided to pay 50,000 Tk to the affected traders through the Upazila Chairman. Arrangements will also be made to provide financial assistance to the victims through the Ministry of Relief.”
Upazila Chairman Raihan Uddin, while inspecting the site, told that he immediately announced to pay Tk 5,000 from the funds of the Upazila Parishad to each trader. If the condition of the fund is good, more allocation will be given.
