Fire in one more SRA building, two injured

MUMBAI: Two persons sustained injuries on Thursday after a Level 1 fire broke out in Sahyadri, a Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) building at Pant Nagar, Ghatkopar East. This is the second such incident in an SRA building in less than a month.

Flat No 403 on the fourth floor of the 11-storey building caught fire at around 1 pm and was extinguished at 1.53 pm. Two affected residents were admitted to Mumbai’s Rajawadi Hospital—Nirmala Shelar, 36, who suffered 20 percent burns, is still in hospital, while Sachin Shelar, 37, who suffered smoke inhalation, was treated and allowed to go home. An official from Rajawadi Hospital said that Nirmala’s condition was stable, and she was under observation.

“The exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained,” said additional divisional fire officer P A Sawant. “Nirmala was alone at home when it broke out, and our officials will talk to her to find out more. It appears that there was a gas leak in the house, which had three gas cylinders. The building’s fire alarm system was not working. We have instructed residents to get it in working condition immediately.”

Sawant added that according to his information, the building had a part occupancy certificate (OC). “However, we will check that as well and verify all the documents,” he said. “The primary reason for the fire will be known in a day or two.”

On October 6, a fire at an SRA building in Goregaon’s Unnat Nagar killed eight persons and injured 61 others, following which a committee to prevent future fires was set up by BMC commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal on the orders of chief minister Eknath Shinde. The committee announced a slew of measures on October 23 to prevent future SRA fires.

One such measure said that all buildings with a conditional fire NOC would have to be checked by the fire brigade, and a compliance with those conditions would have to be reported to the chief fire officer’s office to get a full NOC.

Currently, Form B (a fire compliance certificate) from the fire brigade is not issued to buildings which have not received an OC but have residents living in them. The committee report suggested that such buildings would have to be given a Form B certificate with full fire compliance. The fire brigade will have to make the necessary rules for this.

Prakash Wani of the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Shiv Arogya Sena, who lives in the same area, said the fire erupted after the gas stove suddenly flared and Nirmala Shelar’s saree caught fire. “This is a new building,” he said. “Regular fire audits need to be conducted of new buildings.”