4 shops burnt to ashes in Borkhola; angry residents vandalise Fire Brigade engines, Police resort to Lathi-Charge

In Borkhola’s Bhangarpar market, a small fire broke at around 10 pm last night. The locals immediately informed the Fire and Emergency Services for help. The fire gradually grew wilder and started devastating everything that came on its way. The flames kept rising higher and more and more worried locals kept gathering there.

According to the locals, the Fire and Emergency Services’ vehicles reached the spot about two hours after they were first informed. By then, four shops were burnt to ashes damaging property worth several lakhs.

Post midnight when engines reached the spot in the Bhangarpar market, hundreds of angry residents attacked the vehicles. Stones were pelted on the government property, window shields were vandalised with rods and bamboos and officials of the Fire and Emergency Services got injured.

To bring the situation under control, local police rushed to the spot and had to resort to lathi-charge. “After a light charge, the situation becam calm. Police officials are still on the spot patrolling the area. There is no tension in the area now,” informed in charge of the local police station.

The Police, in its statement, said that the Fire Brigade Engines were traveling from Kalain. “The Engines could not reach earlier than it did as the condition of Kalain – Silchar is bad and it is just not possible to drive fast on that road. They were helpless,” Police said in a media statement.