Hoteliers fume at fire safety law

Nagpur Residential Hotels Association (NRHA) has approached the urban development department seeking clarification on implementation of
Maharashtra Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act, 2006 as it applies to high-rise buildings, especially those having hotels and restaurants.

On December 6, 2008, the state government notified the new act and empowered the chief fire officer to seal any building or establishment for not following fire safety norms. With this, the fire and emergency services department of Nagpur Municipal Corporation has issued notices to hotels on Central Avenue to made changes in their establishments or be ready to face action like disconnecting power and water and also sealing the building. The act also empowers the CFO to ask the police to initiate action against building owners if they failed to comply with the norms. He or she could also undergo rigorous imprisonment up to three years.

In the notice, the fire department has instructed the hoteliers to construct an underground 1.5 lakh litre capacity water tank with one diesel and one electric pump of capacity 2,280 litres per minute (LPM) and one electric pump of capacity 180 litres per minute (LPM), a terrace tank of capacity 20,000 litres, emergency staircases of width 1.25 metres covering all floors, fire control room with trained personnel and providing emergency standby electric supply for staircase and lift.

NRHA has pointed out that it would not be possible for old buildings to make all the changes asked for by the fire department. "How could we build such a large underground water tank in buildings constructed in late 1980s. Then, building plans where sanctioned by Nagpur Improvement Trust and NMC as their prevailing regulations," NRHA said. Rules applicable before 1989 did not have any provision for fire fighting or obtaining Fire NOC for a building irrespective of its height, it said.

It was only 1989 that the provision of obtaining temporary NOC from fire department for buildings more than 15 metres high was brought in. Accordingly the Development Control Regulations had prescribed requirements for fire fighting provisions for building above 15 metres. All buildings constructed after December 6, 2008, should now comply with provisions in Maharashtra Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act, 2006.

The NRHA first approached the municipal commissioner Aseem Kumar Gupta and police chief Praveen Dixit, informed the association secretary Balbir Singh Renu. The officials advised them to approach the urban development department.

CFO Chandrashekhar Jadhav said that life safety was biggest priority. "If the hoteliers find it difficult to implement, then they should shut their establishments," he said.