Fire officials refused to award it pointing out flaws in new building, while a fresh plea for certificate was never made
The Monday blaze at Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Hospital is raising several questions. Constructed in the 1970s, was the building fire compliant? Was the glass facade installed during the renovation, which proved to be a major hindrance during firefighting and rescue operation, illegal?
The hospital did not obtain a final No Objection Certificate (NOC), said deputy fire officer of Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) on Tuesday.
Though the hospital had applied for final NOC for the new building, the authorities did not apply for a fresh NOC after the renovation of the main building (where the fire erupted) where a glass façade was installed.
Constructed in the 1970s, the hospital was taken over by the ESI Corporation in 2008 and started renovating it in 2009. Simultaneously, it started construction work of PG hostel in 2011. The old structure was undergoing renovation for centralised air-conditioning, applying a fresh coat of paint and installing glass facade.
"Hospital applied for final NOC for the new structure and not for the main building which was engulfed in fire. We visited the site two weeks ago, and after examining the structure we found irregularities in the installations. Thus, we refused to give final NOC. Fire equipment wasn't in place. The building had only one entrance, and that too has occupied with a material," said an officer from MIDC fire Brigade.
"The hospital is not under Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB). The state government fire brigade can give NOC to them. As per glass facade is concerned, they have glass facade only on the front side, and there were openings on each floor," said Vijaykumar Panigrahi, deputy chief fire officer of MFB.
"We didn't receive any application regarding main hospital building. The hospital built in the 70s. Maybe they had taken NOC at that time. We are searching for papers. The building has been renovated recently and they have installed a glass facade on the front side of the building. Even there is Central Air condition. Though we can't enforce fire act, 2006 on it considering the fact that it was constructed in the 1970s, it was mandatory to apply for NOC in case of any structural change. Even a periodical fire NOC is needed. But we didn't receive any application from them," said Ogale.
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 "ESIC Hospital Blaze")
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