State structures including the Parliament House Annexe, Vayu Bhawan, Sena Bhawan, and ministry offices in Lutyens’ Delhi rank badly in terms of fire safety.
Inspections undertaken by the Delhi Fire Service (DSF) found that these buildings of high importance do not have enough measures in place to avoid loss of life and property in the case of a fire.
According to the DFS list, 100 such buildings in Lutyens’ Delhi alone fail to adhere to fire safety parameters.
DFS chief Atul Garg said that these buildings do not require any ‘No Objection Certificate’ (NoC) as these are quite old.
“As per the inspections, we have found shortcomings and have suggested a few changes, which should be done,” Garg said.
According to the former DFS Chief RC Sharma, these buildings are incapable of fulfilling the modern-day requirements.
“These buildings are old and have been built long back. They may not have the required facility, which has been introduced like compartmentation and putting a door on a staircase. It may not be possible to install doors at the staircase. That is why these buildings feature in the list of structures with shortcomings,” said Sharma.
According to a letter sent to the Parliament House Annexe after an inspection last year, the DFS noticed multiple shortcomings.
“Hose reel on the ground near BJP room number 5B is not functional. Main pumps and a diesel pump are not on auto mode; branch pipes are missing in hose boxes and in some boxes, only one hose is kept instead of two. The main control room fire alarm and detection panel is not functioning properly and all exit and gates must be kept clear,” DFS had said.
The DFS had also directed that all counter fire measures that are installed in the Parliament be kept in working condition during the sessions.
Earlier today, a fire at a factory in Anaj Mandi in Delhi killed 43 people and injured many more.
(With inputs from ANI)
Source: Thanks WIONews.com