Delhi fire safety rules redone to stop rooftop kitchens

The restaurant of Hotel Arpit Palace — Cross Roads Bar & Restaurant, where the fire broke out on February 12 — was granted a fire safety certificate by Delhi Fire Service (DFS) in 2016.

Ten days after a predawn fire at a guest house in Karol Bagh killed 17 people, the Delhi government approved 10 amendments to the Delhi Building By-laws (2016) to strengthen fire safety rules in lodgings in the national capital.

Hotel Arpit Palace in Karol Bagh after a massive fire broke out on February 12. (Biplov Bhuyan/HT PHOTO)

In an interdepartmental meeting chaired by Delhi’s home minister Satyendar Jain, who also holds charge of the urban development ministry, directives were issued on the use of rooftops, basements, passages and exit routes in order to control the spread of fire in public buildings.

“All existing and future guest houses must install carbon monoxide smoke alarms, fire doors on each floor, and remove all kinds of combustible materials from passages, exit routes and rooftops,” the Delhi government said in a statement.

The meeting in which the amendments were passed was also attended by senior officials from all the three municipalities of Delhi (north, south and east) and the departments of fire services, home and urban development of the Delhi government.

The restaurant of Hotel Arpit Palace — Cross Roads Bar & Restaurant, where the fire broke out on February 12 — was granted a fire safety certificate by Delhi Fire Service (DFS) in 2016 (see inset).

But an official February 15 inspection report into the incident showed glaring safety lapses in the premises.

It revealed that the only fire exit in the guest house was locked at the time of the incident, the fire safety equipment was not functional, and the hotel staff was not trained to handle the blaze. It was also observed that there was high usage of inflammable material inside the restaurant and the rooms of the guest house.

Under the new rules, no kitchen or any cooking activity will be allowed on rooftops or basements of guest houses. The storage of inflammable material on the rooftops will also be restricted. Apart from this, installation of inflammable false ceilings over the roof or on the terrace will not be allowed, and the use of material such as wooden panelling, foam panelling, and carpets, which can aggravate fire in case of an accident, will not be permitted.

According to the amended rules, no-objection certificates will not be issued to those buildings that have more than four floors, excluding the basement and the stilt floor.

“Owner/Director/Partner will submit three signed hard copies along with one soft copy in PDF format of all the floor plans indicating the floor-wise use while submitting the application to the Fire Department for NOC,” was also a part of the amended rules.

Former director of Delhi Fire Services SK Dheri said that amendments to the building code is a good move towards making commercial buildings fire-safe, but the key is to ensure that these are implemented and the rules are adhered to.

“There are already several rules in place. Steps must be taken to ensure that the rules are followed,” he said.