Govt OKs amendments to Building Bylaws 2016

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 22

In the wake of the Karol Bagh fire, the government today banned using rooftops and basements for kitchen or any cooking activity and prohibited the usage of inflammable materials in construction of passage and corridors in guest houses, among the 10 amendments to the Delhi Building Bylaws 2016 for enhancing fire safety.

Special directives have been issued regarding the use of rooftops, basements, passages and exit routes for curtailing the spread of fire in public buildings in the national capital. All  guest houses are supposed to install carbon monoxide smoke alarms, fire doors on each floor and remove all kinds of combustible materials from passages, exit routes and rooftops.

The decisions came after an inter-departmental meeting chaired by Home and Urban Development Minister Satyendar Jain.

On February 12, a deadly fire at hotel Arpit Palace in Karol Bagh snuffed out the lives of 17 people and injured three others.

Initial probe showed that many of the building regulations were not followed which could have reduced the impact of the blaze prompting the government to make amendments to the bylaws to prevent the recurrence of such fire incidents.

The revised law bans kitchen, any cooking activity or storage of inflammable material on rooftops or basements. No temporary roofing using fibre reinforced plastic or any inflammable material will be allowed.

“Gas bank, if any will be installed conforming to the standards prescribed in the National Building Code and fire NOC for guest-house will not be issued to those buildings, which have more than four floors (excluding basement and stilt floor),” said the government in a statement issued here.

It stated that the 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.