BENGALURU: The fire mishap at Kailash Bar & Restaurant in Kalasipalya that claimed five lives on Monday has come as an eye-opener for civic agencies. Fire and Emergency Services Department is planning to recommend to the BBMP not to issue trade licenses to any commercial establishment till it has a fire safety clearance.
Officials in the department said most commercial establishments are operating by throwing fire safety measures to the winds.
“There are thousands of such commercial establishments which do not comply with fire safety measures. However, they still get trade licenses from the BBMP. This is happening as there is no proper monitoring system in place. Hence, we have decided to recommend to the BBMP to make changes in their policies,” an official said.
Director General of Police (Fire and Emergency Services) M N Reddi told The New Indian Express, “We will recommend to the BBMP to make some changes in their policy related to the issuance of trade licenses. Compliance with fire safety guidelines should be a must for commercial establishments before obtaining trade license.”
The department has issued notices to 12 pubs and bars, six each in Indiranagar and Koramangala after they were found to be located in high-rise buildings without NOC from the Fire Department.
The department had conducted a fire safety audit of pubs and bars, in the wake of a fire mishap in Mumbai on December 29. The 12 pubs were issued notices on December 30, directing them to implement fire safety measures within 15 days, failing which orders would be issued to close them.
However, congested areas like Kalasipalya, where the fire claimed five lives, were left out, apparently because the focus of the authorities remained on pubs following the catastrophic fire in the Mumbai pub.
Experts say it is only reactionary in nature that the authorities are waking up to the real threat in congested places where all rules and laws are ignored in pursuit of business goals.