Baddi unit fire exposes lack of adherence to TCP norms

With no emergency exit in the Samarth Life Sciences, Manakpur, where a massive fire gutted the three storey building this morning, the lack of adherence to the Town and Country Planning (TCP) norms has once again been exposed.

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“The ill-fated Samarth Life Sciences unit had covered the entire floor area as against the 70 per cent norm of the TCP, thus leaving no space for an emergency exit or outer stairs which could have been used by the staff during such an exigency,” observed Ramkumar Chaudhary, MLA Doon, who visited the fire-ravaged unit this morning. He said he was thankful to God that the unit was not functional when the fire broke.

“Those having covered their entire premises would be asked to adhere to the norms and vacate the 30 per cent additional area. The officers have been directed to ensure its adherence,” stressed Chaudhary.

Talking to media persons, he said, “A multi-departmental task force constituted last year to review the fire-preparedness should examine all such units and devise safety measures. SDM Baddi, tehsildar and company staff have been directed to take emergency measures for the safety of the workers like emergency exit, stairs on the outer side and a parapet in the said unit for use during emergencies.”

Nearly a year after the formation of an inter-departmental task force to conduct a comprehensive safety audit of industrial units in the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN) industrial area, the work could not even begin. The task force was created in response to a devastating fire at NR Aromas, a perfume manufacturing unit in Barotiwala, which claimed nine lives on February 2 last year. The tragedy underscored the need for stricter safety protocols across industrial units, yet progress has been sluggish.

A year on, the officials appear to have conveniently forgotten the state government’s directions as not even a single unit has been inspected for its safety audit.

The task force had devised a questionnaire for industrial units, requesting information on the use of inflammable materials, fire safety measures in place, and evacuation plans. Apart from circulating the checklist, nothing was done further in this direction.