Ahead of Durga Puja, political leaders have stepped forward to support the fire victims of Bidhan Market in Siliguri with financial help.
After chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s initiative, Darjeeling MP Raju Bista made his way to the market today, allotting Rs 10 lakh from his MP LAD (Local Area Development) fund for at least nine shop owners who lost everything when their businesses were completely destroyed by a fire on 27 September.
During her visit to Uttarkanya on 28 September, CM Banerjee had announced compensation: Rs 1 lakh for fully damaged shops and Rs 50,000 for partially damaged ones. She also instructed Siliguri Municipal Corporation mayor Goutam Deb to oversee the reconstruction of the shops.
Today, MP Raju Bista visited the market to personally express his support for the affected shopkeepers. “I met with the members of the Bidhan Market Byabasayi Samiti and assured them of my complete support. Along with assistance from my personal funds, I have also pledged Rs 10 lakh from my MP fund for the nine shop owners who lost everything,” he said.
“I’m deeply concerned that such a tragedy might happen again,” Mr. Bista added.
“Bidhan Market is extremely congested, and the lack of proper planning is alarming. To address this, I’ll be allocating funds to build a water tank, which will provide drinking water and also serve as an emergency resource,” he said.
Accompanying Mr Bista were Siliguri MLA Dr Sankar Ghosh, Debobrata Saha, secretary of the Bidhan Market Byabasayi Samiti, BJP Siliguri general secretary Raju Shah and others.