Surat: 150 Hospitals Sealed for not Having Fire NOC, Doctors seek IMA Intervention
Surat: Taking action against more than 150 hospitals that do not have a fire NOC (no objection certificate) or Building Use Certificate (BUC), the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) has sealed those facilities.
The action by the authorities is part of a drive by the SMC across the State. This comes after a game zone caught fire last month in Rajkot and killed 27 people, including children, Indian Express has reported.
Meanwhile, facing the action from the authorities, the affected doctors held a meeting on Tuesday with the officials of the Indian Medical Association (IMA). During the meeting, the association assured the doctors of all possible help. Soon, a representation is likely to be made before the civic body.
The meeting on Tuesday was held at Surat New Civil Hospital and it was attended by more than 300 doctors and representatives of different hospitals and the Surat unit of the IMA.
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Commenting on the matter, the IMA Secretary of Surat region, Dr. Vinesh Shah told Indian Express, "Problems of all IMA members will dealt individually and personally, and zone wise doctors committee will be formed for all nine municipal zones in Surat. The committee will look after the problems and appropriate representation will be made to authorities."
"Members have complained that there are discrepancies in the guidelines for fire safety measures, so we will ask for uniform guidelines from the fire safety department. We will request authorities (Surat Municipal Corporation) to review stringent norms of BUC and Fire NOC with proper interpretation of the law," he further mentioned.
"Electrical and biomedical engineers have to be paid high costs. We will make a plan to get NOCs at reasonable expenses. Members of IMA are ready to abide by rules and regulations," added Dr. Shah.
Meanwhile, speaking about the issue, one of the doctors present at the meeting informed that a huge number of hospitals in Surat have been sealed and they have been running for more than 50 years. "Earlier there was no such requirement of a (BUC)… and today it is difficult to get the BUC," informed the doctor.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that last month, in a tragic incident, seven newborns died and five got injured after a baby care centre in Delhi's Vivek Vihar caught fire. As per media reports, the hospital authorities did not possess a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Fire Department.
This incident shed light upon the lackadaisical approach of the government and health facilities towards the fire safety norms. As per the current rules, the hospitals can't register under the Delhi Nursing Home Registration Act without NOC from the Fire Department which means in the absence of NOC, no registration will be granted. Further, under the Fire Act, requirements are only laid down for buildings in residential areas having a height of more than 15 meters. There are no such NOC requirements for less than 15 meters.
