The Ministry of home affairs (MHA) of the Government of India on Tuesday bestowed an honour on a total of ten officials of Assam Fire and Emergency Services.

The Home ministry decided to award the officials on the occasion of fire service week 2022. Of the ten, three will receive the honour posthumously.

In a letter to the Assam governnment’ s Director of fire services, the home ministry mentioned that it had approved the award of DG-FS, CD and HG’s Bronze Disc and commendation certificate to the ten officials.

While Late Jugal Ch. Payang, Station Officer, Late Gajendra Nath Das, Sub-Officer and Late Amulya Chandra Kalita, Leading Fireman will receive the honour posthumously, Smt. Jayshree Khersa, Deputy Director, Sh. Ghanashyam Choudhury, Divisional Officer, Sh. Dayal Chakraborty, Response Team Commander, Sh. Prasanna Deka, Sub-Officer, Sh. Anup Kumar Gayan, Sub-Officer, Sh. Dilip Urang, Emergency Rescuer, and Sh. Devison Chutia, Emergency Rescuer will be awarded during the fire service week.

Notably, National Fire Service Week is celebrated every year in India from April 14 to April 20 to pay homage to those brave fire fighters, who sacrificed their lives in line to their duty on April 14, 1944.

On that day, an explosion occurred at the Bombay docks in British India when the British freighter SS Fort Stikine, carrying a mixed cargo of cotton bales, gold, and ammunition including around 1,400 tons of explosives, caught fire and was destroyed.

Some estimates put the figure of deaths due to the explosion at around 800, most of whom were residents of nearby slum areas. Around 66 fire fighters died in the line of duty.