Concern over poor fire-safety equipment in Ranchi buildings, Real Estate News, ET Real Estate

Ranchi: In Belair Apartment Complex Mahatma Gandhi Marg is more than two decades old. posh residential The complex spread over six towers is home to 108 families. There are fire extinguishers on each floor and fire hydrants on each stairwell.

“Recently, we installed pump sets to pump water (from reservoirs) to the topmost floors in case of fire. Every three months, mock drills are conducted for the residents and the extinguishing chemicals are changed at regular intervals, said Subhash Naik, the facilities manager of the complex.

Jharkhand Police Housing CorporationThe residential complex is located on Line Tank Road. Inaugurated in 2015 by former chief minister Raghubar Das, the complex consists of eight towers, each with 32 flats.

Although fire hoses are connected to water sources, hoses can get damaged. A resident said, “There are fire extinguishers on every floor, but their chemicals haven’t been changed even once.”

The recent incidents of fire in two residential buildings in Dhanbad, in which 17 people died within 10 days, have raised concerns over fire safety measures across the state. In Ranchi, however, hundreds of apartments are inhabited without proper fire safety measures.

Sita Kunj, a residential complex in Lower Burdwan Compound, was built in 2010. “The developers did not create safety measures like water reservoir or fire fighting water pipes. We kept demanding but they turned a deaf ear,” said Anil Kumar, a resident.

Recent incidents in Dhanbad have forced the residents to take preventive measures on their own. “Just yesterday, we held a meeting of our Samaj members. It was agreed that funds would be collected to install fire safety measures and a professional would be engaged for its design. Like Sita Kunj, several other apartments, including standalone buildings and residential complexes, lack fire management measures.

Jagjivan Ram, state fire safety officer, said: “Based on the design of the buildings, developers are given fire NOCs, which they submit to the Ranchi Municipal Corporation for approval. Fire NOCs are valid for one year and they In cases where there is no NOC, advisories are issued to the developers or building owners.

Ram, however, did not specify how many residential complexes in Ranchi do not have fire NOCs.