MHA asks states, UTs to conduct fire safety review of hospitals, nursing homes

The Union home ministry on Wednesday asked states and Union Territories to conduct a detailed review of fire safety mechanisms at hospitals and nursing homes providing Covid-19 care. In a letter to chief secretaries and UT administrators, Union home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla drew their attention to fires caused by short circuits.

Over a dozen fire incidents reported particularly from Maharashtra and Gujarat have claimed many lives in the past two months. These incidents indicated a lack of maintenance or a high load on internal wirings, leading to short circuits and loss of lives and damage to essential infrastructure, Bhalla said. Bhalla said a plan of action should be put in place to ensure such “incidents aren’t repeated” in any health facility.

“States and UTs have been requested to conduct a detailed review with officials from the health, power and fire departments, and prepare a detailed plan of action to ensure that fire safety measures are in place in all hospitals and health facilities,” a ministry spokesperson quoted from the letter.


States and UTs have also been asked to issue directions to the concerned officials. Health facilities should be visited by field-level officials to examine internal wirings and availability of functional safety equipment in accordance with fire safety guidelines and necessary remedial action be taken immediately in case of deficiencies, the ministry said.

The communication points out that a large number of Covid-19 infected patients are under treatment in dedicated health facilities across the country. In most cases, oxygen-supported beds, ICU beds and ventilators are critical interventions, and therefore it is important to ensure there is 24x7 power supply in all hospitals and medical facilities, it said.

Further, the advisory drew attention to recent directives from the director general (fire services, civil defence and home guards), MHA, on fire safety in hospitals and nursing homes.