Up in smoke

TUESDAY’S tragic blaze in a furniture factory of Panchkula that quickly engulfed two floors, its thick fumes asphyxiating three lives, once again marks the lackadaisical attitude to maintaining fire safety measures in commercial establishments. In a similar fiery episode, a furniture showroom on the Mohali-Kharar highway was gutted in June 2019. Consider the frequency of some devastating Mohali furniture market infernos in the near past: fires have broken out in April 2020, December 2018, January 2017 and September 2016. It is undoubtedly an alarming regularity and points to blatant flouting of safety norms. Having robust firefighting mechanisms in places stocking combustible materials, such as furniture, should be — and is — the rule.

But, unfortunately, public memory seems to be short. Other than knee-jerk promises by the authorities of ensuring an improvement in the situation as also probes initiated, it is business as usual. Until, another fire accident strikes. That the burning issues brought to the fore during most fire incidents in our country have remained more or less the same over the years underscore that smokescreens are put up to hide the poor standards of firefighting gear, that are prerequisites for clearing building plans. The common, but lame, reasons are inoperable fire extinguishers or hydrants, lack of emergency exits, fire brigades falling short on engines and water and delayed response to an emergency call. The horrific end of a young man falling to death from the burning 19th floor of a new building — notably, sans a functional firefighting system — in Mumbai last week was avoidable. Such callous oversight and lacunae put both the authorities concerned and builders on the mat for giving short shrift to safety and regulation.

The loss of many precious lives and properties can be prevented if all buildings are secured with new-age, technology-driven alarms and other smart firefighting fittings wired to spark immediate action. Fire-mitigating measures are fundamental to lifting the country out of the rut of its shameful statistics. As per the NCRB data, on an average, 35 Indians die every year in a fire.