‘Court stays restrain Gurugram fire department from sealing buildings’

Gurugram’s additional divisional fire safety officer IS Kashyap talks about a number of issues, including the need of a fire NOC and action taken against violators, among others.

Over the past week, HT published a series on how public places in Gurugram with high footfall, such as Vyapar Kendra, Sadar Bazar, Qutub Plaza and Mini Secretariat, lack fire safety systems making them extremely vulnerable in the eventuality of a blaze. In the concluding part of the series, additional divisional fire safety officer IS Kashyap discusses a series of issues, including the need of a fire NOC and action taken against violators, among others.

Gurugram’s additional divisional fire safety officer IS Kashyap (Yogendra Kumar/HT Photo)

Excerpts:

What is a fire department’s no objection certificate (NOC) and why is it relevant?

A fire NOC certifies that a structure has the necessary fire fighting equipment, such as functioning sprinklers, extinguishers, water tenders, fire alarms, smoke detectors, hose pipes, sand buckets, for both detecting and dousing a blaze. In addition, the structure has enough space at its entry points for fire tenders and firemen to access the site of fire, and enough spaces at its exits for people to escape.

How is a fire NOC approved and then renewed?

Before construction of a residential structure measuring above 15 metres or a commercial structure commences, the owner has to get a building plan approved from the appellate authority on whose land the structure falls, such as the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) and Department of Town & Country Planning (DTCP). One of the conditions for a building plan to be sanctioned is that the owner has to submit the map of the building to the fire department based on which we recommend the entry and escape routes, and the types of fire fighting systems required on each floor.

Once construction is completed, the owner needs to procure the fire NOC for getting an occupation certificate (OC) from the authority concerned. Before issuing the NOC, we verify if the owner has complied with drawings of entry and exit points as recommended by the fire department in the original fire scheme and has provided the necessary fire fighting systems as well. An NOC is valid for a period of one year. The same measures are once again verified for the licence to be renewed for further 12 months.

Read | One of Gurugram’s most congested markets ill-prepared to fight fire

If a structure does not have an NOC or is in gross violation of fire safety norms, what action can the fire department initiate?

As per the Fire Services Act 2009, if a building owner has not procured an NOC after three show cause notices reminding him or her to do so, the structure can be sealed.

How many such buildings have been sealed in the city?

We have not sealed any building in Gurugram, and there is a reason behind this. Each time we send sealing notice to owners of buildings such as the Qutub Plaza and Vyapar Kendra where the NOCs have expired, the owners approach the local court and procure a stay on it. Then the matter remains stuck in litigation for decades.

The powers of sealing a building in Gurugram are reserved with the director of the Haryana Fire Services Directorate in Panchkula. Prior to sealing a structure, an approval is sought from the director, which takes at least two weeks to get approved. In the interim, the owners of the structures that are facing sealing procure a stay from the local court or the high court and hence we are rendered powerless. We have sent a recommendation letter to the directorate last month to transfer the powers of sealing to the MCG commissioner so that the structures violating fire safety norms can be sealed immediately. We are yet to receive any response from the directorate on this.

Who is accountable in the eventuality of a blaze in these structures?

The owners of the buildings are accountable and can be imprisoned in case there is a major fire leading to causalities. The stay from the court only prevents the buildings from being sealed, and directs the owners to ensure the fire safety norms are followed until a final judgement on the matter is passed. However, there is no one to check this.

The Mini Secretariat is yet to apply for a fire NOC since its inception in 2004, and Sadar Bazar does not have any fire fighting equipment or requisite fire safety norms. Are you taking any action against them?

In 2016, the then deputy commissioner of Gurugram had been alerted about the lack of NOC. At the time, he had deputed an executive engineer from the health department to ensure that the certificate was obtained. However, there was no follow-up from their end after this, and we keep on sending verbal reminders to the officials concerned annually without any action from their side. At Sadar Bazar, nothing can be done. The structures in the market measure below 15 metres and hence are not under the ambit of the Fire Safety Act. However, we have strategically placed a fire tender from the Bhim Nagar fire brigade near the market since Sunday so that it can reach the spot within three minutes.

What is the ideal response time in the eventuality of a blaze, and is the fire department well-equipped?

The ideal response time in urban areas is five minutes, and in rural area 15 minutes. While the existing four fire brigades are strategically placed to meet the response time, we get the aid of other public and private fire departments such as the Air Force, DLF, Maruti Suzuki and Honda who also send their tenders during a blaze and we are also able to use their equipment for combating fire. Hence, cumulatively the resources are adequate.