Collector issues order on use of glass doors

All commercial and financial institutions functioning in Ernakulam district, including shopping malls, must ensure that glass panes used in doors, partitions, and as walls conform to specified standards to prevent injury and death, District Collector S. Suhas has said.

The order was issued invoking provisions of the Disaster Management Act in the wake of the death of a woman customer at a bank in Perumbavoor earlier this week after she unknowingly crashed into the glass door.

Only toughened or tempered glass must be used. Moreover, steps must be taken to ensure that the presence of glass is made known by using stickers or symbols on them. Under no circumstance must the presence of transparent glass panes be unknown to people. The direction in which doors are opened must be communicated in bold letters in both English and Malayalam. All these must be adhered to within 45 days. The secretaries of local bodies must ensure that none violates the rules.

On the use of poor quality glass pane for the door at the bank, Mr. Suhas said the customer’s death could have been averted if a glass pane as specified by law had been used. Moreover, the door could not be opened in either direction. The usage of fully transparent doors without mandatory stickers warning people of their presence is illegal.