Hyderabad: A fire tower is mandatory for buildings taller than 24 metres and above, irrespective of the occupancy type — residential commercial or semi commercial. In addition, a fire command centre (FCC) is mandatory for such buildings, according to revised norms issued by the fire services department.
According to the new guidelines, diesel generators will be permitted to be housed in rooms in basements provided the wall has a two-hour fire resistance rating. Louvres (vertical slats) are mandatory for such structures.
According to the guidelines, fire no objection certificates (NOCs) are no longer required for buildings that are shorter than 24 metres. According to the earlier norms, commercial buildings above 15 metres in height and residential buildings above 18 metres required the NOC.
These revised requirements were intended to provide a clear, uniform and practical approach to the implementation of fire and safety measures while processing applications for provisional fire NOCs, according to the Telangana fire, disaster response, emergency and civil defence department.
The revised instructions that came into force from October 7 will be applicable only to fresh applications. The norms were revised after the government stated that a building would be categorised as a high-rise if its height crossed 21 metres (around six floors) , compared to the previous limit of 18 metres (five floors).
Vikram Singh Mann, Director-General, fire services, issued the revised requirements in buildings following consultations with representatives of major builder associations — the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (Credai), National Real Estate Development Council (Naredco) and the Telangana Builders Federation.
According to fire officials, the revised provisions were aimed at streamlining the fire NOC process, improving ease of compliance and ensuring effective implementation of fire safety measures in buildings.
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