HYDERABAD: Home Minister K. Jana Reddy has said that the Government is contemplating changes in the relevant laws to ensure that stringent fire safety norms are maintained in high-rise buildings, movie halls, shopping malls and other such structures.

Inaugurating a workshop on `Fire and life safety' organised by Disaster Management, Infrastructure and Control Society (DMICS) here on Saturday, he said stringent laws were needed as non-implementation of adequate precautions were leading to mishaps.

Admitting the need for budgetary enhancement for Fire Services Department, he said the Centre had sanctioned Rs. 118 crores for improving disaster management infrastructure over the next five years.

Geoff Williams, president, International Emergency Technical Response Institute (IETRI), UK, outlined the steps to be adopted to improve the efficiency of a `Critical Crisis Team' in the 21st century when an incident occurred in a high-rise or a mega sporting arena.

He said fire and police personnel should be imaginative to pre-empt terrorists from targeting critical assets. "When we think smarter, we can beat the biggest terrorist of them all." He stressed the need to involve local community and school children in disaster prevention.

P. Ramakrishnam Raju, Member, Andhra Pradesh State Human Rights Commission, called upon all States to emulate Maharashtra in implementing the National Building Code. He said it should be made mandatory to ensure safety of life and property. He stressed the need for creating awareness about safety regulations among people.

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