AP to set up 17 new fire stations with Central Govt assistance

Andhra Pradesh is gearing up to build 17 new fire stations, and the central government is backing up the project. This upcoming project of establishing new fire stations in Andhra Pradesh will strengthen the state’s emergency response capabilities. North Andhra would have six stations and one engine and the State Government would allocate Rs 250 crore for the project. The State would appoint the personnel for each station, which should have more than 15 people. The locations for these new fire stations in AP would be in Yendada, Simhachalam, the IT SEZ om Visakhapatnam, Nathavalsa in Bhogapuram, Araku, and Chintur in ASR.

North Andhra Pradesh in particular lacks a significant number of fire stations. The state has 175 constituencies and not all of these places have a working fire station in place.

Additionally, there should be one fire station for every 50,000 residents according to the Fire Advisory Council guidelines, a standard which is not met. Andhra Pradesh has a total of 190 fire stations but they are distributed unevenly.

For example, Anakapalle has six fire stations and six engines, assisting the needs of various pharmaceutical companies. The fire department, however, relies on 10 private fire engines in case of emergencies. Officials have raised concerns about the safety and quality of these fire engines. Krishna district has the highest count of fire stations, while Yelmanchali has one fire engine. Atchutapuram and Parawada, which are special economic zones (SEZs) and Araku Valley have no fire engines or stations.

Vizag currently houses eight fire engines and four fire stations. This count is low when compared to the growing urban development of the city. Similarly, the ASR district, has only two fire engines and two fire stations. This low count leaves a lot of area exposed and vulnerable to fire accidents. There are nine fire engines and eight fire stations in Vizianagaram and Srikakulam has eleven fire engines and ten fire stations.

Experts say that fire safety should be expanded for the growing urban development in the region. They also expressed that the State Government should commit to appointing the necessary staff and personnel, and allocate salaries and sufficient maintenance money. This will ensure that the fire stations continue to work and provide fire safety to the citizens. They warn that these new fire stations in AP will be left inoperative if immediate action is not taken.

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