A Monday afternoon turned chaotic as a fire broke out in North-West Delhi at a plastic bag manufacturing unit in the Shahzada Bagh area of Inderlok. The event, reported around 11:37 a.m., sent thick black smoke into the air, visible from several kilometers away, setting off panic among residents and employees.
The Firefighting Operation
When the emergency calls were received, the Delhi Fire Service (DFS) dispatched five units at first. However, the highly flammable nature of the plastic materials stored in the building made the fire spread quickly.
- Units Out on the Job: A total of seven to eight fire tenders such as specialized water bowsers and a multi-purpose vehicle—were deployed.
- Command: The operation was conducted by senior officials. This includes Divisional Fire Officer MK Chattopadhyay and ADO Rajiv Sinha.
- Current Status: As of 3:30 PM, the fire is largely limited to the affected building. The firefighters prevented the "line of fire" from reaching the narrow lanes of Inderlok, tightly packed with neighboring factories.
#WATCH | Delhi: A massive fire broke out in a factory in Inderlok area. 7 fire tenders are present at the spot. Firefighting operations are underway. More details awaited.
— ANI (@ANI) February 16, 2026
(Video: Delhi Fire Service) pic.twitter.com/mHRCxa7GwX
Safety and Casualties
The Delhi Fire Service is thankful to say that no deaths or injuries have been reported thus far.
- Shelter Evacuation: Once smoke was detected, the building was evacuated as fast as possible.
- Challenges: As a densely populated industrial pocket, the narrow “Relaxon wali gali” created a challenge for the large fire engines to negotiate and get access to regular water.
Cause Under Investigation
The precise cause of the blaze is unclear, though initial suspicions suggest a short circuit in the factory’s internal wiring. The authorities also are looking into whether the unit met new fire safety standards that plastic processing hubs now have to follow.
“Our priority was to take precautions to not have any people stuck and to prevent the fire from becoming a cluster-blaze in such a congested area. The cooling is in progress,” says a senior DFS official on scene.
Broader Context: A Day of Industrial Accidents
The Inderlok fire came on a day of exceptional distress for Indian industrial safety. Hours earlier, a much more severe fire at a chemical factory in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, claimed the lives of seven workers. These two events have thrown the fire safety audit debate back into focus at the industrial estates across the National Capital Region (NCR).
