Bhopal: A biogas plant worth ₹1 crore was reduced to ashes within half an hour on Sunday evening. The plant, located behind Yadgaar-e-Shahjahani Park in the state capital, caught fire around 5:30 pm. It took over 90 minutes and more than a dozen fire engines to bring the flames under control, reports The Times of India.
The fire was so fierce that flames rose as high as 20 to 25 feet, and thick black smoke could be seen from nearly five kilometres away. Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident.
According to initial reports, dry trees and bushes had been gathered near the plant, next to the waste transfer station, just a few days earlier. The fire, whose cause is yet to be determined, quickly spread through this dry vegetation and engulfed the entire facility within an hour.
The biogas plant was established in 2017–18 after the construction of the waste transfer station by an Indore-based company. It was designed to convert wet waste into biogas for use in the Deendayal Kitchen, which provides meals for the underprivileged. A 100-metre pipeline was laid to connect the plant to the kitchen. However, the plant only managed to supply gas for a few minutes each day for testing, falling far short of its goal to save ₹5,000–₹6,000 daily in LPG costs.
The facility contained ten plastic tanks of 20,000-litre capacity each — six used for processing wet waste into gas and four for storage. When the fire reached these tanks, they melted and released thick black smoke across the area.
The plant required five tons of wet waste daily, sourced from vegetable markets and hotels in the old city and MP Nagar. Due to an irregular supply, it eventually stopped operating, though it continued to be listed as functional on official records.
Despite the fire starting at 5:30 pm, fire engines from the nearest Pul Bogda and Fatehgarh stations took about 30 minutes to reach the site. In total, over a dozen fire tenders were deployed.
Fire Officer Saurabh Patel said that roadblocks due to an event at Lal Parade Ground forced the engines to take longer routes, delaying their arrival by around 20 minutes.
Senior officials of the Bhopal Municipal Corporation could not be reached for comment.
