Alarming rise in fire incidents in India indicates authorities’ negligence, safety lapses

The recent fire incidents at a game zone in Gujarat and a children’s hospital in New Delhi have yet again sparked the conversation about the lack of fire safety regulations in residential and commercial spaces alike.

Despite an alarming report of fire tragedies across the country, India continues to ignore fire safety protocols, resulting in hundreds of lives lost every year.

The country’s fire safety record is one of the worst in the world, which can be attributed to a lack of enforcement and a culture of complacency.

Many buildings, especially in urban areas and cities, lack adequate fire safety equipment, such as fire alarms, sprinklers, and emergency exit.

In both the game zone fire in Rajkot and the children's hospital fire in Delhi, the place was found to have just one way for both entry and exit

It has also come to light that the five-bed neonatal center in Vivek Vihar had 27 oxygen cylinders kept there, out of which, five had exploded during the deadly blaze.

The findings of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), which visited the site after the incident, found that the hospital building had no emergency exits, fire extinguishers were non-functional and there was a lack of operational fire alarms and water sprinkler systems.

The commission noted that the lapses were in grave violation of the National Building Code of India, 2016, and guidelines from the National Disaster Management Authority.

Local authorities frequently neglect to conduct routine fire safety audits to ensure compliance.

Similarly, in the Rajkot fire incident, a shortage of staff emerged as a significant reason for the lack of fire safety regulations. The structure spanning 50m in width and 60m in length, with a height of a two-story building, was made using metal sheet fabrication. 

The owners of the game zone had not secured a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the local fire department and lacked adequate firefighting equipment.

A study by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) underlines that “lack of planning and poor implementation of norms in urban areas is a major reason behind increasing fire risks as it leads to the formation of informal settlements and over-densification.”

Poor maintenance of electrical systems also contributes to the risk factors of fire. Many times, unauthorized factories and workshops operate without proper safety measures. These establishments often collude with authorities to avoid inspections and regulations, putting the lives of workers at risk.

A Delhi Fire Service data revealed that there are around 400 fire incidents reported annually in the national capital alone. In the past two years, there have been 800 fire incidents in unauthorized factories in Delhi, with no corrective measures taken despite the accidents.

The National Crimes Bureau of India (NCRB) data reported a total of 3,375 fire incidents in 2021 (1,808) and 2022 (1,567) due to electrical short circuits. In 2019, 330 deaths were reported in commercial building fires and 6,339 deaths were reported due to fire incidents in residential buildings across India.

According to data from the Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India (ADSI), an average of 35 fire-related deaths occurred daily between 2016 and 2020. 

The report further mentioned that Maharashtra and Gujarat collectively accounted for 30% of fire-related fatalities, with electrical faults, human negligence, and ill-formed habits being the primary causes.

On May 28, another fire incident was reported in Delhi’s Eye Mantra Hospital in Paschim Vihar. However, no one was injured in the incident.

Amidst the reports of recent fire incidents, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has directed all state-run and private health facilities to conduct a fire audit. It has issued urgent preventative measures for the fire safety of buildings which will be adopted by hospitals, schools, dispensaries and other MCD buildings.

Another incident was reported on May 26, where three people died after a fire broke out in a four-story residential building in Krishna Nagar area of east Delhi.

Officials said that the fire began in 11 two-wheelers in the stilt parking of the house and spread on the first floor which had ground (stilt) plus four floors.

On May 30, a fire incident was reported from a posh high-rise in Noida which occurred due to a blast in an air-conditioner of the house.

While fire incidents mainly happen because of faulty planning, the record-breaking heat is also to be blamed to some extent. 

The overheating and overloading in intense summer heat has led to many incidents of fire in compressors. The power demand in Delhi-NCR has also crossed 8,300 megawatts this summer which is at an all-time high.

The National Building Code (NBC), published by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) in 1970 and updated in 2016, comprehensively outlines the fire safety regulations in India including construction, maintenance, and fire safety protocols in buildings. 

Additionally, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has specific fire safety criteria for public structures like hospitals, including provisions for open safety spaces, evacuation procedures, and dedicated staircases and evacuation drills.

However, the indifference to safety standards continue to persist at the local level enabling avoidable tragedies and putting at risk the lives of civilians and children.