Fire Hazards in Anaj Mandi (Grain Market), Old Delhi: Vulnerability and Resilience

Fire is one of the crucial resources since its discovery and played a pivotal role in civilization to the modernization of Anthropos. Its misuse by human converts fire as a resource to resistance and when the resistance of fire becomes furious that creates fire disaster. India and particularly its capital city is highly vulnerable to fire, which is evidenced through the 31,000 and 85 calls yearly and daily respectively by Delhi population to fire department to douse it. To explain this vulnerability of Delhi, disastrous fire incidence of Anaj Mandi, dated 8th of December 2019, which deceased 45 people and impacted economically, socially and psychologically to thousands of population, so pronounced as “Disastrous Devil of December” has been taken into account. Why and how Anaj Mandi is vulnerable and what are the solutions to make it resilient are described in this research paper. For the study, both primary and secondary data sources are taken into account. The study found that poor design, haphazard construction, improper electric wiring, lack of public awareness, illegal industries, congested lanes, absence of fire safety measure, etc. makes Anaj Mandi vulnerable to fire. Disastrous Devil of December was developed and decorated by authorities, societal organizations, locals and individuals by their close coordination. Unawareness is at utmost as more than 75% of the population are unaware of fire safety measures. The best strategy for making Anaj Mandi and Delhi fire resilient is the three-tier model based on the A4 Phase of the fire disaster development cycle, a society-based and K3 principles or individual-based model. This research paper provides a detailed analysis of the fire incidence of Anaj Mandi in old Delhi.