NAROWAL: Twenty-seven fire hydrants have been installed at important places on various roads in Narowal district at a cost of Rs3.5m to deal with fire incidents.

District Emergency Officer Engineer Aurangzeb said the district administration had sought a report regarding fire safety some weeks back.

He said 10 fire hydrants have been installed on various roads and important places in Tehsil Headquarters Narowal to help in firefighting. He said fire hydrants had been installed at eight locations in Shakargarh city and two in Zafarwal while eight at various points in Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur.

He added that during firefighting operations, the fire engines used to run out of water and they had to return to the rescue station to get water.

He said with the installation of fire hydrants, fire vehicles would be able to get water from nearby fire hydrants. He said the installation of fire hydrants would help save lives and property of citizens. District Information Officer Ehsanul Haq told Dawn that Rs3.5m would be spent on the installation of 27 fire hydrants and the project would be completed with the help of Wasa and Municipal Committee Shakargarh and Zafarwal.

The fire engines cannot reach the densely populated residential areas of Mohalla Kashmirian, Mohalla Chokhandi, Khawajgan, Zakirpura, Muhammad Pura and Ganj Hussainabad and other areas of Narowal city in case of any fire incidents. Such residential areas were also present in Shakargarh and Zafarwal tehsils.

Though the Narowal district administration has installed fire hydrants at main roads and important places, the densely populated residential areas have been completely ignored.

Published in Dawn, April 1st, 2026