An alarming gap in fire safety compliance has been revealed among nursing homes in Delhi, with only 24 out of an estimated 1,100 facilities possessing the requisite fire safety certificates.
According to fire department officials, most of these establishments operate without a no-objection certificate (NOC), relying solely on licences from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) for their operations. The fire department’s scrutiny has identified widespread issues including overcrowding, lack of fire exits, and electrical faults as common reasons for rejection of fire safety applications. A fire officer from the provisions wing remarked, “We have approximately 1,100 nursing homes on our radar, although there may be additional unregistered establishments. These nursing homes, which serve children, the elderly, and other patients, are 9 metres or taller. Out of these, only 24 have secured a fire safety licence. Many either failed to apply or were rejected due to non-compliance.”
This revelation comes in the wake of a tragic incident at the Newborn Baby Care Hospital in Vivek Vihar, where a fire resulted in the deaths of six newborns and injuries to five others. Delhi Police disclosed that the hospital owner, Dr Naveen Khichi, lacked both a DGHS licence and a fire department NOC. Despite Khichi’s assertion that a fire NOC was unnecessary due to the building’s height being less than 9 metres, fire officials highlighted his failure to maintain essential fire safety equipment, adequate fire exits, and sufficient ventilation.
The Delhi Fire Services (DFS) has released a list of 196 hospitals and nursing homes with fire safety certificates, revealing that only 24 have obtained clearances. These compliant facilities are predominantly located in areas such as Connaught Place, Greater Kailash, Safdarjung Enclave, Dwarka, Uttam Nagar, Nirman Vihar, Preet Vihar, Mayur Vihar, Shahdara, and Jyoti Nagar. Fire department officials noted that facilities are allowed to reapply for fire safety approval, provided they rectify structural and safety deficiencies. Common violations include overcrowding, as seen in the Vivek Vihar incident where 12 babies were crammed into a small room lacking proper ventilation and surrounded by machinery, posing significant risks.
A fire NOC must be renewed every three years, subject to inspection. According to DFS data, there have been 11 fire incidents in hospitals and nursing homes in Delhi up to May 26 this year, averaging two incidents per month. In 2022, there were 36 such incidents, with 30 reported in 2022. The stark statistics and recent tragedies underscore the urgent need for stringent enforcement of fire safety regulations in Delhi’s nursing homes to safeguard vulnerable populations and prevent further disasters.
