City Pulse

“We conduct regular checks. We have completed fire and safety checks in all the 24 wards. We have even demolished many big restaurants in the city,” said Vijay Khabale Patil, public relations officer (PRO), BMC. Between December 30 last year and January 12 this year, 52 squads of the BMC inspected 2,568 hotels and other eateries across Mumbai to check for fire safety lapses and illegal constructions; 718 hotels were found flouting fire safety norms and notices were issued to them. While 89 hotels were sealed for various irregularities, 913 hotels were demolished in two weeks. Once a restaurant is opened, fire brigade officials visit the premises and give a no-objection certificate (NOC). After that, restaurants need to renew their licences every year.

The Maharashtra Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act mandates every residential and commercial building to conduct a fire safety audit twice a year and submit a compliance report to the nearest fire station, failure to do which can result in rigorous imprisonment up to three years, or a fine between Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000. The act also mandates commercial and other buildings to install and regularly check basic fire fighting systems including fire extinguishers, fire safety equipment, a detection and alarm system, automatic sprinklers, underground static water storage tank, etc. However, these norms were openly flouted by 1Above, the rooftop restaurant where the bodies of all 14 people killed in the Kamala Mills fire were found. Several other resto-pubs and restaurants on the Kamala Mills Compound were found to have breached fire safety norms.

Patil insisted that fire safety inspections were carried out regularly even before the Kamala Mills tragedy. “We carry out checks twice a year. Licences have to be renewed every year. I can’t say about the buildings that were demolished before the incident, the fire department is supposed to look into that,” he said.

However, according to the operations manager of a mall in Thane who wanted to remain anonymous, the frequency of inspections has increased after the fire. “After the incident, the fire department and Mahanagar Gas Ltd (a natural gas distribution company) are regularly carrying out inspections to implement fire norms in eateries across Thane. Before the fire, checks were not that frequent,” he said.

The incident also served as a wake-up call for owners of restaurants and other commercial establishments and they’re being more cooperative with officials on fire safety compliance matters. But fire and safety checks alone can’t ensure total compliance and prevent fires. Encroachments and illegal constructions are a major cause for concern for the hotel industry. “Mostly, fire accidents tend to occur at illegal establishments and in encroached areas. Even legal establishments that comply with the norms have to suffer because of such illegal joints. We have requested all hotel and restaurant owners to be cooperative with BMC officials during the audits and implement the recommendations made by them,” said Santosh Shetty, President, Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHAR).

According to recent reports, the BMC has also introduced a policy to make fire evacuation lifts mandatory in buildings higher than 22 floors. However, this rule is only applicable to new buildings.

Picture Courtesy: Scroll.in