Glass-wall lifts now allowed in residential buildings in Maharashtra

The Maharashtra government has allowed installation of lifts with walls of 16-mm toughened laminated glass which can withstand fire for one hour in the residential buildings, MLC Anant Gadgil informed on Saturday.

Gadgil, a Congress member of the Legislative Council and an architect, had taken up the issue in the last session of the legislature, saying that lifts with at least one side covered by glass can be useful in the event of fire.

He said in a release that while the malls and hotels were allowed to have glass lifts, such lifts were not allowed in residential buildings until now. Gadgil said he discussed the matter with PWD Minister Chandrakant Patil and as a result, the government has now amended the regulations in this regard.

The Congress legislator also said that he had raised the issue of rise in incidents of molestation of women in closed lifts and the government has now issued a circular which makes it mandatory to install CCTVs in them. Patil had made an announcement in this regard in the House earlier.

Gadgil also demanded that in view of closure of a portion of Mumbai-Pune Expressway for repairs following last week's landslide, there were traffic jams. Till the repairs were not complete, the toll on the Expressway should be waived, he demanded. "Toll is charged for maintenance, and if the road is not maintained, what is the point of levying toll," he asked, alleging that the road was not maintained properly.