With more than 60 premium and mid-level party plots expected to host air-conditioned Garba domes during Navratri this year, compared with around 50 last year, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s Fire and Emergency Services Department is preparing strict safety rules for organisers.
Large temporary structures are expected to come up along S.G. Highway, Sindhubhavan Road, SP Ring Road and other parts of the city. The fire department has prepared a 30-point safety notification, which is expected to be officially issued soon.
1 sq m space mandatory for each person
Under the proposed guidelines, organisers will have to restrict entry according to the capacity of the dome or pandal. At least 1 square metre of space per person will have to be provided.
Each pandal must also have at least two emergency exits in opposite directions. The exit route should not exceed 15 metres, while fixed partitions inside the pandal will not be allowed.
For seating arrangements, a passage of at least 1.5 metres will have to be maintained after every 10 seats.
Strict rules for construction and electrical safety
Temporary pandals, domes and stages will have to be constructed at a safe distance from schools, hospitals and godowns storing inflammable materials to ensure easy access for fire-fighting vehicles.
Structures cannot be erected under or near furnaces, substations, transformers or high-tension railway lines. A minimum distance of two metres will have to be maintained between structures.
Electrical wiring will have to be inspected by a government-approved engineer in accordance with the Indian Electricity Act, and a testing report must be submitted. Electrical switchboards must be made of AC or GI sheets.
Curtains and carpets used on the stage and inside the pandal will have to be treated with fire-retardant material. If a screen is installed for showing films or videos, it must use safety film.
Fire-fighting arrangements made mandatory
The guidelines require organisers to keep the following arrangements for every 100 sq m of area:
- Two 6-kg ABC fire extinguishers
- Two 4.5-kg CO₂ fire extinguishers
- One covered drum containing 200 litres of water
- Two buckets filled with sand
- Adequate water supply of at least 0.35 litres per sq m of floor area
- Trained volunteers capable of operating fire extinguishers on duty throughout the Garba event
- Sand below the lamp lit near the Mataji idol, with at least one volunteer present continuously
- A public address system for emergency announcements
- Auto-glow ‘No Smoking Zone’, ‘Exit’ and ‘Emergency Exit’ signs
Organisers will also have to obtain the required permissions and NOCs from the police, traffic police and municipal corporation, apart from fire department approval. A self-declaration will also be required under the Gujarat Fire Prevention Act and the National Building Code part -4.