Junk shops become menace in Hoshiarpur, fear of fire during festivals; When will the Municipal Corporation lose sleep? - scrap shops in residential areas hoshiarpur municipal corporation inaction

Junk shops become menace in Hoshiarpur, fear of fire during festivals; When will the Municipal Corporation lose sleep? Updated: Mon, 20 Oct 2025 01:09 (IST) Junk shops in residential areas in Hoshiarpur are becoming a cause of danger, but the municipal administration is oblivious. There is a fear of fire during the festive season as the scrap warehouses are filled with explosive material. The shops are running against the rules and due to the negligence of the corporation. The Mayor assured to act soon as it is a matter of people’s safety. Municipal Corporation fast asleep, junk shops become alarm bells (symbolic photo) Hazari Lal, Hoshiarpur. Junk shops open in the residential areas of the city have become an alarm bell at this time, but the Municipal Corporation administration is still fast asleep. While the risk of arson is already high during the festive season, these rubbish farms further doubled the danger. Remove Advertisement Read Only News According to the rules, the opening of junk shops in residential areas is completely prohibited, but due to the negligence of the Municipal Corporation, this business is openly operated in many places of the city. These warehouses filled with iron, vehicle parts, old cylinders and empty gunpowder shells can cause a huge explosion or fire at any time. A few years ago, there was an explosion while breaking iron in a junk shop in Bhangi Choa area, killing three people and seriously injuring two. Even after the accident, the Municipal Corporation did not take any concrete steps. The result is that the same situation continues today. This attitude of the administration may provoke a major unpleasant incident in the future. During Diwali, sparks from firecrackers can cause fires in these junk shops. A few years ago, a fire that broke out in a junk shop in Mohalla Bahadurpur due to sparks from fireworks spread panic in the entire area. Even the roof and walls of the house were blown away by the explosion. At that time, a major accident was averted due to the wisdom of the local residents, but that incident testifies that junk shops in such areas can cause great damage at any time. Scrap dealers often bring used ammunition shells or mortars from training camps or industrial areas and break them up. Sometimes live explosive shells are also found in them, giving rise to accidents. Despite this, no survey was done at the administrative level or any concrete action plan was worked on. Hoshiarpur Municipal Corporation Mayor Surinder Kumar Chhinda said, “The process of evicting the junk shops running in residential and dense markets will be identified and started soon. It is a sensitive matter related to people’s safety, there will be no laxity in it.” He said that the corporation will soon conduct a survey and take action against these shops as per rules. Surinder Kumar Chhinda, mayor of the Hoshiarpur Municipal Corporation, said that it would be considered to send out the scrap shops running in residential areas. An action plan will soon be prepared on this because junk shops in dense markets and residential areas can prove to be dangerous. This is a matter related to people’s safety. There will be no relaxation of any kind in this. Appropriate action will be taken by conducting a survey of scrap shops.