Raw material, goods worth lakhs destroyed in cloth factory blaze in Ludhiana

Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, May 22

Raw material and finished goods worth several lakhs were turned to ashes in a major fire that engulfed a knitting fabric manufacturing unit, Jain Amar Cloth Factory, on Noorwala Road in Bahadarke Hosiery and Knitting Complex here this morning.

Over 12 fire engines of MC Fire Brigade reached the spot within a few minutes and full-scale firefighting operations were launched.

According to officials of the Fire Department, the blaze was so fierce that the fire tenders pressed into service had to take turns to refill their tanks and a minimum of 100 tankers of water were used to control the flames. It took the firefighters some 10 hours to bring the fire completely under control and also take preventive measures to stop the fire from spreading further and causing damage to other adjoining buildings.

It was learnt that the fire started at around 6.25am and it might be a passer-by or a morning walker who had intimated the fire brigade about the flames and smoke emanating from the factory, which was closed at that time. Though there was no definite information about the cause of fire, it was believed that it could have been caused by a short circuit.

As the factory owners arrived at the spot after getting information about the incident, they called labourers and made desperate attempts to salvage finished goods, raw material and other items fro the store.

However, the loss of material and machinery was massive.

“Had it not been a Sunday and the factory remains operational during the day, the fire could have turned into a major tragedy,” said a shopkeeper in the area.

It took 10 hours to control the fire

According to Fire Department officials, the blaze was so fierce that the fire engines pressed into service had to take turns to refill their tanks and a minimum of 100 tankers of water were used to control the flames. It took the firefighters some 10 hours to bring the fire completely under control and also take preventive measures to stop the fire from spreading further and causing damage to other adjoining buildings.