After two major fires claimed 18 lives in less than two months, the Delhi government has asked the fire department to prepare a long-term firefighting master plan for the next 3, 15 and 25 years.
In a statement, the government said Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood held a review meeting of the fire department related to the prevention of fire incidents in the capital and the preparedness to effectively deal with emergency situations.
“He discussed in detail the fire preparedness plan, bottlenecks in fire prevention mechanisms, availability of modern firefighting equipment, procurement of new fire vehicles, modernisation plans of the Fire Department, and the proposed Fire Fighting Master Plan,” the statement said.
Delhi has reported two major fires since March. On May 3, a major fire in Vivek Vihar killed nine people. On March 18, nine family members, including three children, died in a Palam fire tragedy. Opposition AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj had criticised the government over the Palam fire, alleging delayed rescue efforts and faulty fire brigade equipment.
Earlier, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had said that the government is preparing a comprehensive and result-oriented Fire Fighting Master Plan aimed at preventing fire incidents and reducing the loss of life and property in the capital.
She had directed all concerned departments to submit a detailed blueprint within 10 days, identifying the causes behind recurring fire incidents, vulnerable zones, gaps in existing systems, and concrete preventive measures. She also stressed the need for immediate and effective public awareness initiatives to educate citizens on fire safety and prevention.
The meeting also focused on improving the response time of the Fire Department, modernising the internal communication system, developing a modern command and control system, and providing advanced technical training to fire officials in line with evolving technologies. Sood also directed officials to further strengthen and technologically upgrade Delhi’s fire safety system to ensure swift and effective action during any emergency.
