The Fire Brigade Officers Association (FBOA) will send a notice to the Municipal Commissioner on Wednesday, demanding that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) provide the requisite manpower and issue clear guidelines for the newly formed Fire Safety Compliance Cell within eight days.
The association said that officers will stop going for compliance drives if the demands are not met in this period. “We felt that before protesting, we must first intimate the Municipal Commissioner,” FBOA president Prakash Devidas said.
Workload worry
Last week, the BMC and the Mumbai Fire Brigade set up a new cell comprising 34 fire officers, who were given the post of designated officer (fire safety). The fire officers were either station officers or assistant station officers who were expected to carry out compliance drives in addition to their existing duties at their respective fire stations.
Mr. Devidas said, “[The BMC and Fire Brigade] need to hire more officers and staff. A fire officer cannot be expected to go out for compliance drives and do all the clerical work of a fire station. The officers are also expected to attend fire calls. It is not humanly possible to do all these duties. There should be a scientific mechanism or a ratio of officers and buildings to determine the number of officers required in each ward.”
The association has said the BMC and senior fire brigade officers should provide detailed guidelines for the cell. At present, the duties are vague, Mr. Devidas said. “They need put it in writing as to what exactly these officers should do, or else even they will be made scapegoats like the officers arrested in the Kamala Mills fire case,” he said.
More concerns
The police have arrested Worli fire station officer R.B. Patil and two others in the Kamala Mills case. Mr. Devidas said that for years, no effort was made to make the system full-proof, and fire officers have borne the brunt.
Representatives of the association met the Chief Fire Officer on Monday to voice their concerns about the safety compliance cell and the arrest of the officers.
Prabhat Rahangdale, Chief Fire Officer, said, “We are in the process of finalising the Standard Operative Procedure for the cell. It should be ready soon.”
