Pharma unit gutted in Baddi fire

A massive fire devastated Alliance Biotech, a pharmaceutical unit loacted at Katha village in Baddi around 11.14 am today. However, no loss of life was reported as workers managed to leave the unit unhurt when the fire broke out.

According to an employee, the fire started from a store room and it spread to the other sections within no time. Thick plumes of smoke could be seen emanating from the unit creating a scare among the employees in the nearby factories.

Firemen from Baddi rushed to the factory after receiving information along with two fire tenders. “Given the gravity of the blaze, fire tenders were requisitioned from Nalagarh as well as other firms like Birla and Vardhman textiles,” informed a fireman from the spot. The actual cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained.

With no setbacks in the unit and the entire plot having been used to raise structures, the fire men faced immense hardships in dousing the fire. Availability of limited space to let in the fire-fighting paraphernalia delayed the operation. A fire tender was stuck while going through a field to reach the unit from its rear as its wheel was stuck in a swampy area. A hydra machine was pressed into service to free the wheel.

The barbed wire of an adjacent plot had to be removed to create access for the fire tender, highlighting utter disregard for the building norms while constructing the unit. The fire was brought under control after several hours.

Shishir Gupta, a unit owner, when quizzed by media persons, stated that efforts would be made to rectify the shortcomings emerging in the fire-fighting operation.

It was yet to be ascertained if the unit had a no objection certificate from the Fire Department as its fire-fighting mechanism looked deficient in meeting the norms.