The Fire Map of Kolkata: An Analysis of the Stephen Court Fire

Don't blame Sanjay Bagaria. He is the owner of Stephen Court, the building which caught fire in Park Street, Kolkata, where 24 hapless souls perished. Don't blame him for want of anyone else to blame. He was only doing what every one else has been doing. Only, unfortunately his building was the one that caught fire. What will change...the rates of the bribes to be paid to the Fire Service Inspectors for permissions...that is what will change...nothing else.
For decades we Kolkatans have gorged on breakfast at Flury's and Chelo Kebabs at Peter Cat, both in the Stephen Court complex and belched out appreciation and admiration for the cuisine with nary a glance at the death trap that the house has been for decades. And now when the inevitable has happened, we cry foul at the lack of firefighting facilities in the city. Folks, this is not about fire fighting - this is much more than all that. Stephen Court has become a symbol of what all can go wrong in a system of systems. Lets start at the very beginning...