Seal our building, but help us get Fire Safety, say residents of Dev Aurum in Ahmedabad's Prahaladnagar area
Members of one of the largest commercial complexes in the city — Dev Aurum in Prahaladnagar — have approached the AMC to take whatever action it sees fit, including sealing the buildings, to ensure that fire safety violations are corrected. Their request comes after Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Vijay Nehra took a hard stand on fire safety following incidents of two major fires.
Committee members of Dev Aurum
Commercial Cooperative Service Society Ltd have asked the AMC to seal the complex, if necessary, as they feel the 5 lakh square feet facility with three high-rises and 354 shops is a fire hazard in the making.
Chief Fire Officer to audit and act against the complex which he claims, “does not have a Fire Safety NOC since March 2018.”
No money to repair fire safety
Motwani said, “There are 354 shopowners who have paid Rs 50 per square feet in maintenance. All this money should have been put in the bank account for maintenance of the complex but nothing out of Rs 2.5 crore collected by the builder has been handed over to the committee. On being asked why they have not taken up the issue with the builder, he said, “When we were elected as heads of the managing committee in March 2018, we did ask for money from the builder.
However, the builder is yet to hand it over.” Blaming the builder for all problems, Motwani said, “The builder tried to start a dispute within the complex by setting up an illegal committee and calling a sham election by using forged seal of the society. We have filed a police complaint to investigate this fraud but since the police did not investigate, we went to the Gujarat High Court. The HC on September 11 ordered the police to file a report within four weeks.”
Recently, Motwani asked Axis and HDFC banks to freeze accounts of the society. The Axis account has Rs 1lakh while the HDFC account has Rs 25 lakh. The committee collects running maintenance of Rs 10 lakh in a month from all the members and spends Rs 8.5 lakh on maintenance.
Requisite action will be taken: Nehra
“I have already instructed theFire Department to take requisite action in a phased manner against buildings flouting fire safety norms. We will be starting with commercial complexes and the result will soon be seen,” Nehra told Mirror.
Helplessness of members
On being asked why the fire safety issue had become such an important issue for them, committee secretary Yogesh Rangwani said, “We recently attended a meeting called by Mr Nehra, where officials appraised us of the deadly outcome of lack of fire safety in high-rises. Taking that into consideration, we want the AMC to take action.”
Motwani added, “The lives as well as livelihoods of all 354 shop owners, employees and visiting clients are in danger due to lack of fire safety. There are also no funds with which to repair it. We fear for our lives.”
Lack of fire safety awareness
From August 22 to September 8, meetings were held at fire stations across the city after Commissioner Nehra asked the fire department to give building owners/managers the list of requisitions they need to comply with and then enough time to make necessary fire safety provisions. Mirror had reported on September 10 that high rises without Fire NOC may soon be sealed by the AMC.
On being asked why the members of the society are not coming forward with contribution towards fire safety, Motwani said, “We tried explaining the importance of fire safety to shopkeepers, but it is tough to convince all of them. Also, there is a distinct lack of fire awareness and consequences of accidental fires in complex this size. Hence, change will only come when the AMC takes tough action.”
Major fire safety violations at Dev Aurum
Several fire safety violations were observed during Mirror check at the site like:high tension wires lying open and running through the staircase or hanging above trees before going into open fuse box; gas, electricity and water lines overlapping with each other in the underground parking; water dripping from air conditioners and running into open electrical wires; dysfunctional fire extinguishers and rusted fire hoses; non-functional fire alarm.
No Fire Safety NOC
The committee members said when they were handed over control of the building from the provisional committee in March this year, there were no papers related to fire safety NOC in them. Motwani said, “Since March 2018, when I took charge, the complex does not have a fire NOC.”
Committee members of Dev Aurum
Commercial Cooperative Service Society Ltd have asked the AMC to seal the complex, if necessary, as they feel the 5 lakh square feet facility with three high-rises and 354 shops is a fire hazard in the making.
Deepak Motwani, president of the committee, has written to the Commissioner as well as to the
No money to repair fire safety
Motwani said, “There are 354 shopowners who have paid Rs 50 per square feet in maintenance. All this money should have been put in the bank account for maintenance of the complex but nothing out of Rs 2.5 crore collected by the builder has been handed over to the committee. On being asked why they have not taken up the issue with the builder, he said, “When we were elected as heads of the managing committee in March 2018, we did ask for money from the builder.
However, the builder is yet to hand it over.” Blaming the builder for all problems, Motwani said, “The builder tried to start a dispute within the complex by setting up an illegal committee and calling a sham election by using forged seal of the society. We have filed a police complaint to investigate this fraud but since the police did not investigate, we went to the Gujarat High Court. The HC on September 11 ordered the police to file a report within four weeks.”
Recently, Motwani asked Axis and HDFC banks to freeze accounts of the society. The Axis account has Rs 1lakh while the HDFC account has Rs 25 lakh. The committee collects running maintenance of Rs 10 lakh in a month from all the members and spends Rs 8.5 lakh on maintenance.
Electrical, gas and water lines running together in basement parking 3. High tension electric wires run openly through stairs leading to basement parking 4. The fuse box lies exposed underneath a shed
Requisite action will be taken: Nehra
“I have already instructed the
Helplessness of members
On being asked why the fire safety issue had become such an important issue for them, committee secretary Yogesh Rangwani said, “We recently attended a meeting called by Mr Nehra, where officials appraised us of the deadly outcome of lack of fire safety in high-rises. Taking that into consideration, we want the AMC to take action.”
Motwani added, “The lives as well as livelihoods of all 354 shop owners, employees and visiting clients are in danger due to lack of fire safety. There are also no funds with which to repair it. We fear for our lives.”
Lack of fire safety awareness
From August 22 to September 8, meetings were held at fire stations across the city after Commissioner Nehra asked the fire department to give building owners/managers the list of requisitions they need to comply with and then enough time to make necessary fire safety provisions. Mirror had reported on September 10 that high rises without Fire NOC may soon be sealed by the AMC.
On being asked why the members of the society are not coming forward with contribution towards fire safety, Motwani said, “We tried explaining the importance of fire safety to shopkeepers, but it is tough to convince all of them. Also, there is a distinct lack of fire awareness and consequences of accidental fires in complex this size. Hence, change will only come when the AMC takes tough action.”
Major fire safety violations at Dev Aurum
Several fire safety violations were observed during Mirror check at the site like:
(L to R): Water drips from AC into open wires in close vicinity of gas line; power line enters complex from a tree outside; water collects around heavy duty motor
No Fire Safety NOC
The committee members said when they were handed over control of the building from the provisional committee in March this year, there were no papers related to fire safety NOC in them. Motwani said, “Since March 2018, when I took charge, the complex does not have a fire NOC.”
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