RTI reveals violation of norms to get NOC for cold storage
6 Dec, 2012On January 30, a major fire broke out in a cold storage unit in a multi-storied building at Kalamna, Nagpur resulting in the collapse of the building and claiming 18 lives and leaving 14 injured. A social activist, Kamlesh Shah, had filed an application with the NMC's (Nagpur Municipal Corporation) fire and emergency services department under the Right to Information (RTI) Act seeking the details of the incident. The information obtained under RTI shows that the National Building Code (NBC) and Development Control Regulation (DCR) norms were violated in granting NOC to the cold storage.
Shah lodged a complaint with the Municipal commissioner, Shyam Wardhane, pointing out that the authorities might have illegally granted permission to the cold storage owners. The complaint also indicated that the Deputy Municipal Commissioner (DCM), Rizwan Siddiqui, did not take action against the fire department officials for violation of rules.
Shyam Wardhane has issued a show cause notice to the DCM seeking an explanation as to why no action was taken against the officers who had issued the NOC to Pravesh Enterprises, owned by Pratibha Pramod Khandelwal, for the cold storage unit.