Only 20 hotels have NOCs from Fire Dept in Rohtak district
Sunit Dhawan
Rohtak, April 10
A majority of the hotels, banquet halls and restaurants in Rohtak are running without the no-objection certificates (NOCs) from the Fire Department.
As per official sources, only 20 hospitality units have got the NOCs, while the number of total units is much higher.
“Notices have been issued to the owners of the units which do not fulfill the prescribed norms,” said Pankaj Parashar, District Fire Officer.
He said the Fire Department issues NOCs only to the authorised units, while the unauthorised ones are dealt by the local Municipal Corporation and District Town Planner.
Rakesh Gugnani, general secretary of the Hotels, Banquets and Restaurants Association (HBRA), said there are nearly 200 hospitality units in Rohtak, of which 78 are registered with the association.
Asked why a majority of hotels, banquets and restaurants were running without NOCs from the Fire Department, Gugnani stated that the primary reason for non-issuance of NOCs was non-compliance with the National Building Code (NBC) norms.
“We are ready to comply with the norms, but some of them are impractical, particularly for the existing units. The government should provide some relaxation in this regard by prescribing different sets of norms for different categories of hospitality units,” he said.
The association has demanded that the new norms should be made mandatory only for the new units as those built decades ago cannot implement the norms due to certain constraints.
The hoteliers lament that the authorities concerned have been requested to do the needful in this regard, but to no avail.
Hemant Bakshi, the president of the Rohtak Traders’ Association, pointed out that many hotels were located in narrow streets in crowded areas, where even the fire engines cannot reach in case of emergency.
“The authorities concerned should not allow the establishment of hotels etc in such areas to ensure the safety of residents,” he said.
Association seeks relaxation of rules
The primary reason for the non-issuance of NOCs from the Fire Department is non-compliance with the National Building Code norms. We are ready to comply with the norms, but some of them are impractical, particularly for the existing units. — Rakesh Gugnani, gen secy, Hotels, Banquets and Restaurants Association
