The Hindu : New Delhi News : Govt. gets cracking on fire safety in slum clusters

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, May 15, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

Govt. gets cracking on fire safety in slum clusters

Staff Reporter

Core Group issues directions on water fill points, clearing encroachments and clogged roads

NEW DELHI: Continuing cases of loss of life and property in major fire incidents during recent months in slum clusters across the Capital have forced the Delhi Government to do some re-thinking on fire safety and fire-fighting in these cluttered areas. Under a new plan now it has been decided to establish filler points at various locations in such clusters to ensure proper availability of water to control raging fires and prevent loss of life and property.

The Government has also taken a note of the problems of access in the slum clusters and failure of the fire tenders on majority of the occasions to reach the site of fire due to clogged roads and illegal occupation of public space. It is understood that the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Fire Department have identified many such roads and spaces that have been encroached up and where there is a need to clear the path for easy access. A recent survey of 1,100 such clusters was undertaken by the two agencies and they have sought certain safeguards and measures to ensure that the fire-fighting operations are not hampered. At some places, once the fire tender entered the slum cluster, it became virtually impossible for it to reverse to replenish water. The Core Group on Fire Safety headed by the Chief Secretary, S. Regunathan, has issued directions that filler points should be provided in all JJ clusters so as to reduce the reaction time for tackling the raging fire and thereby reducing the risk to life and property. The filler points would be put up by the Delhi Jal Board at locations identified by the Chief Fire Officer in such clusters. These filler points would as far as possible be located in the vicinity of police posts in slum clusters as a security step against tampering. As for the electric connections, it was observed that recent reports have pointed out that short circuits were identified as the major cause for fire in the slum clusters. The Core Group has decided that the most dangerous and critical areas in slum clusters should be identified first and then the private power companies should issue notices to the people asking them to seek individual connections.

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