CISF jawan rushes to help, dies in fire at Delhi’s CGO complex

A major fire broke out in central Delhi’s CGO complex on Wednesday morning and 24 fire tenders were rushed to the spot

A 53-year-old Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) sub-inspector died in a fire at the CGO complex, which has several central government offices, in Lodhi Road early Wednesday.

Delhi fire service vehicle seen outside Antyoday Bhawan where a fire broke out Wednesday morning at CGO complex in New Delhi. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT photo)

The Delhi fire department said the fire broke out at the ministry of social justice and empowerment office on the fifth floor of Antyodhaya Bhawan.

The building—which houses offices of the CISF, directorate of revenue intelligence and the ministry of environment, forest and climate change—did not have a no-objection certificate (NoC) from the Delhi fire services department since 2017.

Fire officials said there were many flaws such as the absence of fire-check doors — internal doors built with fire-resistant material that prevents fire from spreading.

Chief fire officer (CFO) of the Delhi Fire Services, Atul Garg, said they received a call at 8.34 am. “Initially, we rushed in 10 fire tenders and later 13 more were sent as the blaze grew. The fire began from the fifth floor that houses the ministry of social justice and empowerment office,” Garg said.

“Our men went inside and found the officer unconscious on the fifth floor inside the social justice ministry office. Our men conducted a cardio pulmonary resuscitation on him until an ambulance took him to hospital,” the officer said.

Godara was taken to AIIMS, where he was pronounced dead.

A CISF officer who took Godara’s body to AIIMS said he was one of the first respondents and risked his life to ensure no one was trapped. “After evacuating all the CISF personnel on duty, Godara deputed one man outside the entrance and asked him not to allow anyone to enter it. He suspected someone could be trapped on the upper floors and went up. We tried to stop him but he said he will return in a while,” said the officer.

Vedpal Chhikara, assistant divisional officer of the fire services who conducted the CPR on Godara, said there was heavy smoke inside the building. “The blaze was spreading fast. The fire was doused by 10.05 am but the cooling operations continued for two more hours. The probable cause was a short circuit. The exact reason will be known after investigation,” he said.

Garg said the 14-storey building had no clearance from the fire department since 2017. “It had an NoC in 2016. In 2017, we conducted an inspection and found faults. The NoC was not issued. In 2018 again, we carried out an inspection but the requirements were not met,” Garg said. The building, however, was equipped with firefighting equipment, which was used by firefighters to douse the blaze, he said.

CISF spokesperson Hemendra Singh said Godara was in charge of the building’s security at the time of the incident. When asked about the NoC, a senior CPWD official said he had no information.