Kolkata: A 15-member task force, formed by the state government on the instructions of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, has begun work on drafting a fire safety policy for the city, expected to be ready within 30 days. The task force held its first meeting on Wednesday at the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC).
Kolkata Mayor and Urban Development and Municipal Affairs minister Firhad Hakim said that all relevant departments, including the Fire and Police departments as well as KMC’s Housing and Building department, will coordinate efforts to prevent fire incidents.
“The first meeting of the task force has been held on Wednesday. The second meeting will be held after some days and the minutes of the same will be prepared. The task force will place its report in the Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee within 30 days,“ said Hakim.
Fire audit is of utmost importance which will be conducted by the Fire department and there will be an audit by a third party too. Departments like Disaster Management, Panchayat and Housing department will work in collaboration. According to Hakim, many areas under the Panchayat have emerged as peri-urban areas due to massive development work.
“The report from the district-level committee will be merged and a comprehensive one will be placed before the Chief Minister during the Cabinet meeting,” he added.
Hakim said that the fire safety audit will start very soon. The committee will analyse the incidents of fire in the city and the state and on the basis of them will delineate precautionary measures to prevent such incidents. He further made it clear that the standard operating procedure (SOP) involving rooftop cafes and restaurants would be implemented strictly.
Apart from Hakim, state Housing minister Aroop Biswas, state Panchayat minister Pradip Mazumdar, state Fire and Emergency Services minister Sujit Bose, Disaster Management minister Javed Khan, ADG (Law and Order) Jawed Shamim, Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Verma, DG (Fire) Ranveer Kumar were among the task force members who attended the meeting.