How many more need to die, GHMC?

How many more need to die, GHMC?
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How many more need to die, GHMC?

Highlights

Secunderabad area has emerged as a major fire risk zone. Gross negligence on the part of various civic wings like GHMC, Electricity department and the fire brigade have once again been exposed following the major fire in Deccan Night Wear Sports store where two people are suspected to have been charred to death.

Hyderabad: Secunderabad area has emerged as a major fire risk zone. Gross negligence on the part of various civic wings like GHMC, Electricity department and the fire brigade have once again been exposed following the major fire in Deccan Night Wear Sports store where two people are suspected to have been charred to death.

As usual, the GHMC and other related civic wings will issue notices, police may arrest the owner of the building and the person who took the mall on lease and stored dangerous material there. Ministers Mahmood Ali and Talasani Srinivas Yadav will make routine statements that action on responsible will be taken. More political leaders will visit, and issue statements and it would be forgotten till some other incident happens.

In September 2022, eight people died in a massive fire in Ruby Motors in Secunderabad. In another incident, in March 2022, 11 migrant workers from Bihar died in a major fire in Secunderabad. In January 2022, the 144-year-old Secunderabad club was gutted.

In the last 10 years, about eight lives have been lost in hospital fires in the city. In 2019, there was a major fire in Nampally exhibition where heavy loss of property was reported. No one knows what corrective and preventive measures have been taken in these cases.

In the present case, the GHMC now says that the building was illegal. It says that it appears synthetic material, chemicals and colours used for dyeing purposes of cloth, leather and other inflammable materials were stored in the building.

The major question is how did the GHMC allow the construction of the building if it was illegal? The law clearly states that there should be enough open space around the building. The main question is why the town planning wing of the GHMC failed to stop the illegal construction? No statutory fire safety measures were provided in the building and no fire clearance was taken and the Fire department too does not seem to be doing any fire audit of the buildings at least in commercial zones.

Even regular electricity audit is not being done by the department, which is mandatory, said Laxman, a fire safety expert.

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