Conduct detailed review, prepare plan of action to ensure no fire incidents in hospitals: MHA to states

Amid increasing fire incidents in hospitals, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday asked states to conduct a detailed review and prepare a detailed plan of action to ensure that fire safety measures are in place in all hospitals and health facilities.

The MHA also highlighted the need for ensuring uninterrupted power supply in hospitals, including Covid-19 dedicated facilities.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to Chief Secretaries of states and Administrators of Union Territories urging them that care should be taken to put in place a plan of action, to ensure that no fire incident occurs in any of the health facilities, particularly Covid-19 dedicated facilities, both in the government and private sector.

"In the context of recent fire incidents and particularly in view of the impending summer season, it needs to be highlighted that either because of high temperature, lack of maintenance or high load on the internal wirings within the facilities, short circuiting takes place, leading to fire incidents and consequential loss of life and essential infrastructure," Bhalla said.

The Home Secretary's communication comes against the backdrop of a series of fire incidents in the past few days, including the death of 18 patients in a hospital in Gujarat's Bharuch on May 1. On Tuesday late night, a fire broke out in a private hospital in Delhi where all the 26 patients, including 17 Covid-19 positive people, were rescued unharmed.

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He said a detailed review should be conducted with the officials from the Health, Power and Fire Departments in attendance and prepare a detailed plan of action to ensure that fire safety measures are in place in all hospitals and health facilities.

The States and UTs should issue directions to the concerned officials that health facilities should be visited by field level personnel to examine internal wirings and availability of functional safety equipment as per fire safety guidelines within these facilities.

Necessary remedial action should be taken immediately in case any deficiencies are found, the letter said.

Highlighting that a large number of Covid-19 positive people are under treatment in health facilities across the country, Bhalla said it is important to ensure that there is uninterrupted power supply on regular 24x7 basis in all health facilities for the proper functioning of oxygen supported beds, ICU beds, and ventilators are critical interventions.

Reports showed that around 100 people have lost their lives in fire incidents in hospitals since last August. On April 28, four persons died after a fire broke out in a private hospital in Maharashtra's Thane district and in the last four months, there were fire incidents in four hospitals in the state in which around 40 people have lost their lives.

On Tuesday, police arrested two officials of a multi-speciality hospital in Raipur where five Covid-19 patients died in a fire on April 17.

In November last year, the Supreme Court had directed that all Covid-19 hospitals should have No Objection Certificate from the fire department.

On November 30 last year, the MHA asked states to take all measures to avoid such incidents, saying "utmost precaution" needs to be taken when the country is fighting a pandemic.

Bhalla had then said that non-adherence of fire safety measures by authorities in their respective jurisdiction were a "matter of concern".