Telangana CS tightens industrial fire safety norms

The Telangana Chief Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao, has directed senior officials to take stringent and coordinated measures to prevent fire accidents in major industries and ensure the safety of workers across the State. The directions were issued during a high-level review meeting held at the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar State Secretariat on Thursday, in the wake of the recent tragic incident at Sigachi Industries.

Reviewing the actions taken so far, the Chief Secretary assessed the status of ex gratia payments to the families of deceased workers and examined the progress of related court cases with the concerned departments. He emphasized the need for accountability and timely support to affected families.

The Chief Secretary instructed officials to prepare a comprehensive and clearly defined manual outlining precautionary measures and standard operating procedures (SOPs) for fire accident prevention in industries. Stressing proactive monitoring, he called for the constitution of Joint Inspection Teams at both State and district levels to conduct coordinated inspections in large, medium, and small-scale industries.

At the district level, the inspection teams will comprise officials from Revenue, Police, Industries, Labour, Medical and Health, Fire Services, and the Pollution Control Board. He directed that regular inspections be carried out and that findings be uploaded on an online dashboard to facilitate real-time monitoring and enable departments to take timely preventive action.

Further, the Chief Secretary underscored the importance of enforcing safety standards, conducting periodic safety audits, and organizing structured training programmes for workers to enhance preparedness and awareness. He made it clear that strict measures must be implemented to prevent recurrence of such incidents in the future.

The meeting was attended by Special Chief Secretaries Arvind Kumar, Sanjay Kumar, and Dana Kishore; Director General of Fire Services Vikram Singh Mann; Sangareddy Collector Praveenya; FCDA Commissioner Shashank; PCB Member Secretary Ravi; and other senior officials.