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Get NOC to hike cinema ticket price
Only 9 of the 150 odd cinema halls in the city have a No Objection Certificate from the GHMC’s Fire Prevention Wing Recently cinema hall...
Only 9 of the 150 odd cinema halls in the city have a No Objection Certificate from the GHMC’s Fire Prevention Wing
Recently cinema hall owners and proprietors in the city sent a proposal to the government demanding an increase in the prices of movie tickets. But, the proposal was put on hold for a few reasons. One of the reasons included attain- ment of a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Fire Prevention Wing of the GHMC.
In the last couple of months, the city has seen a significant rise in the number of fire accidents. In order to further prevent such mishaps, the Fire Prevention Wing has taken up the task of inspecting all residential and non-residential buildings that come under their purview. They have jurisdiction over buildings which are below 15 meters of height. As part of this inspection, they have issued notices to many buildings within the city and have asked them to procure a NOC. Only if the theatres procure a NOC, can they apply for a hike in the price of tickets. As per GHMC records, as on August 2, 2013; out of approximately 150 single-screened cinema halls in the city, only nine of them have procured a NOC.
“Film theatres are considered as places of assembly, people visit cinema halls almost regularly. This makes it essential for them to adhere to fire safety measures that have been implemented by the government,” said, C Lakshmi Prasad, Additional Director, Fire Prevention Wing (FPW).
Lakshmi Prasad added, “Anurag Sharma, Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad has made it compulsory for all the cinema halls to procure a NOC from the Fire Prevention Wing, in order for them to increase their prices. We have issued notices to them and have given the theatres a stipulated time of six months to implement the safety rules. Only after they enforce these laws can they apply for the NOC.”
The Additional Director added that the recent surge of fire accidents in the city were due to faulty electrical wiring. The FPW is diligently working to prevent any such incidents in the future. So far, they have con- ducted inspections in various schools, hospitals, hostels, restaurants and cinema theatres. But going by their records, the number of cinema theatres that have received a NOC is abysmal. “The Fire Service Act was set up in 1999 and it came into force only in 2006, so we started issuing notices only since 2006. Many theatres were built before 2006. So they do not satisfy our norms and hence the numbers are low,” clarified C Lakshmi Prasad.
In the event of a fire mishap, if the theatres do not have proper fire safety measures, it can cause a deadly inferno. The minimum requirements for a NOC are, at least one water tank, a minimum of two staircases. If they have only one they are given a notice period of six months to come up with another staircase. “It is better to be relatively safe than be completely safe,” said C Lakshmi Prasad.
- TSS SIDDHARTH
