Fire-safety audit of buildings sought

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday sought a report and paragraph-wise response from the federal government and other respondents within two weeks on a petition seeking fire-safety audits of all buildings in the capital and the sealing of those operating without mandatory no-objection certificates (NOCs).

IHC Chief Justice Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar issued the written order following the previous hearing.

According to the order, the petitioner stated that several newborn babies had lost their lives in the tragic fire at PIMS and that the incident had exposed serious shortcomings in the implementation of fire-safety laws in the federal capital.

The petitioner claimed that a large number of buildings in Islamabad were operating without fire-safety NOCs, despite the Islamabad Fire Prevention and Life Safety Regulations 2010 making such certification mandatory.

According to the counsel, commercial, residential, educational and healthcare buildings were being used without essential safety equipment and emergency exits. The authorities had also failed to conduct comprehensive fire-safety audits of buildings across Islamabad, he argued.

The counsel maintained that failure to identify buildings operating without NOCs amounted to negligence on the part of the relevant authorities. He further argued that non-enforcement of fire-safety laws violated Articles 9, 14 and 25 of the Constitution.