New fire rules for enhanced safety in Hyderabad

EV&DM makes it mandatory for all commercial establishments to have Fire Mitigation/Safety Certificate, fire safety equipment in addition to the NOC

Hyderabad: To enhance fire safety in commercial establishments in Hyderabad, the GHMC’s Directorate of Enforcement Vigilance & Disaster Management (EV&DM) has made it mandatory for all commercial establishments to have Fire Mitigation / Safety Certificate, fire safety equipment in addition to the No Objection Certificate (NOC).

“If the fire safety equipment is not in place and the certificate is not obtained, their trade license will not be renewed,” EV&DM Director N Prakash Reddy told Telangana Today.

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Earlier, commercial establishments of over 15 metres of height had to obtain just a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Telangana State Disaster Response and Fire Services while establishments with height of less than 15 metres had to take clearance from the GHMC.

However, with the new norms being formulated, besides applying for a NOC, all commercial establishments must mandatorily obtain Fire Mitigation / Safety Certificate irrespective of their plinth area and the number of floors.

Moreover, as per the new fire regulations, all commercial establishments should have two fire extinguishers and two smoke detectors per 100 square meters of plinth area.

If the establishment is spread over 200 square meters, then it should have four fire extinguishers and four smoke detectors and the equipment should be increased a s per the plinth area.

To get Fire Mitigation / Safety Certificate, commercial establishments have to apply online with the empanelled agencies and the GHMC has appealed to all the traders to cooperate and utilise the opportunity.