Every society in Maharashtra needs to obtain a Certification of Compliance for Fire Prevention and Life Safety (FPLS) measures twice a year (January & July). This has been mandated by the Directorate of Maharashtra Fire Services.

The Directorate has assigned agencies to carry out Fire Safety Inspection and has issued the licenses to over 400 agencies under the Maharashtra FPLS Act in the state. This Act entrusts the liability on owners and occupiers of a building to install FPLS measures as per its provisions. In cases of non-compliance with the provisions of the Act, notices are issued for compliance/rectification. Failure to comply or rectify will result in legal action against the defaulters under the Act. It may comprise a fine or imprisonment, as the case may be. In the wake of the massive fires in Lake Lucerne (Powai), Lotus Business Park, Directorate of Maharashtra Fire Services and Mumbai Fire Brigade have tightened safety norms for all buildings and commercial structures in Maharashtra and particularly in Mumbai. The Maharashtra Government, too, is now strict on stringent implementation of all Fire Act provisions.

The enlisted licensing agencies empowered to undertake fire safety inspections and should be approached by the owners / occupiers of buildings to conduct safety inspections of their structures. The Maharashtra FPLS Measures Act, 2006, provides for all Residential, Commercial and Industrial buildings to follow a series of fire safety norms. Currently, fire services are empowered to impose a penalty of Rs. 50,000 or suggest imprisonment of owners / occupiers who don't follow the fire safety law.

In October 2016, a massive fire had erupted at Maker Towers Cuffe Parade killing 2 persons. More recently a fire broke out at La Mer, Bandra which has residences of Mr. Sachin Tendulkar's in-laws and Mrs. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's parents, which resulted in huge losses. Both these places the fire prevention systems were found to be faulty and not operational. These blazes expose the vulnerability of residential buildings to such disasters.

A recent survey by the fire department revealed that only few buildings have conducted fire inspections and submitted the results to the Fire Brigade. It also concluded that if all the rules and norms are observed, the incidences of fire will come down dramatically.

The Fire Brigade has declared that it is setting up a special inspection cell to ensure that the inspections of buildings are completed promptly.

The independent fire inspection cell is being created for the purpose of taking strict action against those who fail to comply with the safety norms put in place by the authorities.

What Steps should be taken to maintain the Fire System?

The fire protection measures and firefighting equipment installed in the buildings are essentially provided for taking timely actions to combat the fire and possible loss of life and property. As such, it is in the interest of the owners to ensure to:

• 1. Ensure all the fire protection and firefighting equipment installed in the factory premises are always maintained in good working order.
• 2. Conduct the mandated FORM B Audit inspections every January and July (Twice a year) from a Licensed Agency.
• 3. Rectify all defects, without loss of time.
• 4. Submit the FORM B to the Fire Brigade.
• 5. Conduct FIRE EVACUATION DRILL regularly to familiarize the workers with the sound of the Fire Alarm and also habituate them to the steps to be taken in case of a Fire Emergency.
• 6. Encourage the residents and security personnel to train themselves in Basic Fire Fighting techniques by conducting trainings in the building premises.

Juzer Madarwala is owner of Vaccifire. Vaccifire safeguards more than 150 housing complexes from fire, in Mumbai alone. He can be reached at juzer@elixirengg.com

(This "Corporate  News" Published in September 2023 Edition)