Fire brigade water used to wash religious, historic sites

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Newly elected corporators have been using fire brigade water tankers to clean religious and historical sites over the past few days, raising serious concerns. As per rules, high-pressure water cannot be used on heritage structures as it may damage them. After complaints reached the administration, officials clarified that fire brigade water will now be used strictly for firefighting.

The municipal corporation had earlier faced a shortage of fire vehicles, but several small and large tenders were purchased in recent years, and each fire station now has over 15 vehicles. During summer, fire incidents rise nearly fourfold, keeping fire staff on 24-hour alert. Despite this, corporators reportedly used fire tenders to wash religious sites and even pressure-clean a 400-year-old historical structure. Fire officials allegedly provided vehicles under pressure, leading to wastage of lakhs of litres of water. Complaints revealed such use at eight to ten locations. Chief fire officer Ashok Khandekar said fire tenders will no longer be provided for such purposes.