A sudden blaze along the Nainital highway in Bareilly on Tuesday night has drawn renewed attention to safety lapses around utility storage and power infrastructure. Stored piles of plastic pipes meant for piped natural gas (PNG) infrastructure caught fire after an overhead power line reportedly malfunctioned, sending sparks cascading onto the flammable stockpile.
According to officials at the scene, the incident occurred around 10:30 PM and resulted in an intense fire that was visible from a distance. Though no injuries or casualties were reported, the fire caused considerable panic, led to a significant traffic jam on the highway, and inflicted heavy losses on the infrastructure company involved. Authorities suspect a fault in the overhead line as the source of ignition. Fire and emergency response teams rushed to the scene and battled the flames for over an hour. By then, the stock of gas pipes, stored in the open near the highway, had already been reduced to melted plastic and ash. Fire personnel confirmed that a detailed investigation would follow to determine if there were any violations of safety protocols related to the storage of highly flammable material near a power line.
Eyewitness accounts described a sudden eruption of flames that grew rapidly, aided by the plastic composition of the stored PNG pipelines. Local commuters and residents gathered near the highway as fire engines worked to contain the blaze. Traffic was suspended on both sides of the highway for over half an hour, causing significant congestion on one of Bareilly’s busiest routes. An official from the company responsible for laying the gas pipelines confirmed that the materials were meant for a major PNG expansion project in the region and estimated the losses to run into several lakhs of rupees. “These pipes were part of an infrastructure plan to improve access to cleaner cooking fuel. The loss will set us back by several weeks,” he said. This incident has raised broader questions about the oversight and regulation of urban utility storage near high-risk zones.
Urban planners and fire safety experts warn that the growing pressure to expand natural gas networks across Indian cities and towns must not come at the cost of basic safety and risk assessment. While this fire may have spared human lives, it serves as a reminder that urban resilience requires proactive planning, particularly in sectors promoting sustainable energy transitions. Clean energy infrastructure like PNG pipelines is central to India’s low-emission goals, but their deployment must be backed by robust safety frameworks and local accountability.
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