The Tata Ryerson unit where the fire broke out and (below) a fire tender waits for a call. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, Oct. 24: Try dialling 2431036 for the Golmuri fire station in case of a mishap, and it will be forever engaged.

Reason: the receiver is kept off-hook, thanks to subscribers of Airtel.

It may sound bizarre, but it’s true. The emergency number 101 is toll-free for Airtel subscribers, which, in fact, links to BSNL’s 2431036. But fire brigade officials keep the receiver off-hook because, according to what they claim, prank calls keep them on their toes 24x7.

Ashok Jha, a resident of Sitaramdera, had dialled 2431036 to report a fire breakout in Old Baradwari locality the other day, but it was busy.

He rushed to the Golmuri fire-station to find a staff shouting at the top of his voice over the telephone that Jha had frantically been trying to reach.

“But it was too late,” said Jha, wondering “as the distance between Old Baradwari and the fire station was hardly one-and-a-half-km, I could rush there. What about mishaps at spots far away from the fire-station?”

An official justified. He said throughout the day they receive as many as 500 prank calls, “most of which in abusive language”.

He told The Telegraph: “Fed up with the mischief meted out to us, we have even lodged an FIR with the Golmuri police station against some of the callers, giving their telephone numbers, and have also reported the matter to the superintendent of police. But nothing has been done.”

Superintendent of police, East Singhbhum, Navin Kumar Singh, said: “It is a serious matter. Till the issue of prank calls is settled, people may dial 100 for police assistance and the call received by the police control room will divert it to the fire brigade.”

He, however, added that he was not aware of any FIR.

“If there was one, it would have come to my notice.”

He assured of looking into the matter.

The fire-brigade officials claimed that they have approached BSNL to separate Airtel’s toll-free number from 2431036.

“Since we pay a heavy amount towards telephone bills to BSNL, while at the same time the phone remains engaged due to prank calls and the common people suffer, it is wise that BSNL separate the hotline from Airtel,” an official said.

A fire broke out at Tata Ryerson this afternoon.

Although the fire brigade from Tata Steel and Golmuri station were pressed into service, the details of the cause or extent of damage due to fire could not be ascertained.