Left homeless, Maisuma fire victims send SOS

Srinagar, November 20: Bilal Ahmad is the sole breadwinner in his family and was making preparations for the marriage of his younger sister. However, a devastating fire incident at Maisuma area of the city on Sunday left his family homeless.

Though the family members escaped unhurt, the fire incident completely damaged two houses at Maisuma and also caused minor damages to other structures in the vicinity.

“We have been left penniless and homeless. You can see for yourself that our house has been completely damaged and all our belongings were destroyed. We have now shifted to our elder sister’s residence at Chinkral Mohalla as there is nothing left here,” fire victim Bilal Ahmad told the Kashmir Monitor.

“The material that we were collecting for our sister’s marriage too was completely destroyed. My father and mother are old and have health issues and I have a family of my own as well. My younger brother is unmarried too and I am the sole breadwinner of the family. I hope and pray that the government takes note of our sufferings and compensates us,” said Bilal, who does denting work at the Batamaloo area of the city.

His neighbour Nisar Ahmad said Bilal’s family was very poor and the fire incident had worsened their condition.

“His parents are ill and have to be taken care of. His sister was preparing for her marriage and they had been making preparations for a long period. Unfortunately, her clothes and other goods too got destroyed,” Nisar told The Kashmir Monitor.

“Actually the fire first started in a neighbouring house and then it passed on to Bilal’s residence. I am lucky that my house was not damaged in the fire incident. We hope that the government and NGOs come forward and conduct an on spot assessment of their plight so that they are adequately compensated,” he added.