The Fire Department of Greater Noida is facing an acute shortage of staff and latest equipment. While most of the old-timers have retired, new recruitments have not yet been made.
In the incident of a major fire, the department has no option but to take help from nearby multinational companies (MNCs), such as LG Honda and Moser Baer.
The Fire Department caters to a 60-sq km area, which includes Dankaur Dadri and Jaarcha. However, in case of an emergency in a remote corner, fire tenders take so long to reach that the blaze cannot be contained on time.
To tackle this problem, the department has opened branches in a few of these far-flung areas, but these are so understaffed that their very presence has become irrelevant.
The fire station in Knowledge Park is a case in point. The arrangements for a fire station there has only been on paper - neither has any area been earmarked for it and nor have construction plans materialised. The fire department officials meant to be stationed here currently sit at an office in the Swarna Nagri sector.
The branches at EchoTech I and III are also caught in a somewhat similar situation. While one is located in the Swarna Nagri market, the other, with only a rudimentary fire brigade, operates from the EchoTech III industrial area.
Matbool Hasan, fire station officer, Greater Noida, told City Spidey, "The department badly needs latest equipment and infrastructural support. If the MNCs around don't help us in times of need, it will be extremely difficult to handle any fire emergency."
