SSB Leads Cross-Border Response As Fire At Indo-Nepal Border Market Brought Under Control
SSB-led joint response controls Indo-Nepal border market fire quickly.
A swift response by personnel of the 41 Battalion Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) helped prevent a major fire from spreading at a border market along the Indo-Nepal frontier in West Bengal’s Darjeeling district, officials said on Tuesday. The incident occurred late on June 16 near the Bhatgaon Border Market, located close to the Indo-Nepal boundary.
The fire reportedly broke out around 9:35 p.m. in a shop within the market area, situated nearly 100 metres from the SSB company camp at Ranidanga. SSB personnel were among the first to respond, rushing to the site with fire extinguishers, sand buckets, and water to contain the flames before they could spread further into the crowded marketplace.
According to preliminary inputs from officials, the fire is believed to have been triggered by a gas cylinder explosion in a chicken shop owned by Md Noor Alam Quraishi. The presence of stored petrol in the premises is also said to have intensified the blaze, leading to rapid spread across adjacent shops in the market area.
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As the fire escalated, SSB jawans assisted in breaking open shutters and gates to help firefighting teams access the affected structures. Fire tenders were later deployed, but personnel from the SSB continued to support operations on the ground, working alongside emergency responders to bring the situation under control.
Within minutes, additional firefighting assistance arrived from across the border, with a fire truck from Bhadrapur Municipality in Nepal joining the operation. Firefighters from Bihar’s Kishanganj district also reached the location shortly thereafter, turning the response into a coordinated multi-agency and cross-border effort.
Officials confirmed that the fire was finally brought under control after approximately 50 minutes of joint efforts by all responding teams. While around 6–7 shops were damaged in the incident, authorities said there were no reported injuries or fatalities. A detailed assessment of financial losses is currently underway by local civil administration officials.
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