Going through fire, water to save lives

SURAT, May 18: Jayant Bhatt is probably the most illustrious fire fighter that the state has ever produced. A winner of three President's wa...

SURAT, May 18: Jayant Bhatt is probably the most illustrious fire fighter that the state has ever produced. A winner of three President’s wards for fire services, state government awards for gallantry along with innumerable awards by civic bodies, his name has become synonymous with the fire brigade department.

After serving as the Chief Fire Officer (CFO) of the fire brigade services of the Surat Municipal Corporation for over 23 years, Bhatt retired in 1996. He has been a part of the infamous Mukesh Prints fire of 1991, which saw 19 firemen and an officer lose their lives, the demolition of a building at Zampa Bazaar about 10 years ago where four firemen and an officer died, the 1993 communal riots in the wake of the Babri demolition and many other instances, since he joined the department in 1973.

But simplicity still hangs around the man who declares, “Today what Jayant Bhatt is, has not been my own but the efforts of the entire department who have worked sincerely for so many years. It is like this: A peacock looks majestic only with its beautiful feathers,” he says.

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Born on April 23, 1938 in Ahmedabad, Bhatt went on to complete his schooling at the C N Sharda Bal mandir and C N Vidya Mandir in Ahmedabad by 1957. He later completed his college in 1959 from the Gujarat College at Ellisbridge.“I wanted to join the army, but my parents would have nothing of it, ” he says. It was when he was a teenager that his father often took him to the fire station at Danpith in Ahmedabad. “The fire siren, the bell, the uniforms all arose my curiosity and then I decided that if not the army, I would join the fire services.” However, even that was not acceptable to his parents and it was only after much difficulty that he could convince them.

He secured admission at the Fire Services College in Nagpur, and began his career as a station officer at the fire brigade HQ in Ahmedabad.

He was perhaps the only fire officer in the city’s fire department to have been educated at the Fire Services College, UK.

Recalling his experiences in Ahmedabad, Bhatt recollects, “My first assignment was a huge fire at Vijay Printing Press in 1960. I was trapped under the building and sustained multiple fractures on my left leg.”. Only later was he told that doctors at the V S hospital seriously contemplated amputating his leg before deciding otherwise.

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When he joined the fire department in Surat, there were only five fire fighters and a force of 40. When he retired, there were as many as a hundred machines and a staff of 425. “I think I have done my job satisfactorily and have lived up to the expectations of my superiors,” he says.

He has been awarded the President’s medal thrice for meritorious service, distinguished service and gallantry and has been a recipient of a number of awards from civic bodies of Ahmedabad and Surat. He was also awarded the State Government Gallantry Award and the Samar Seva medal.

Surely, his is a life dedicated to the service and safety of residents.