MUMBAI: As the city enters the sixth day of Ganeshotsav, celebrations are increasingly spilling out of traditional pandals into high-rise residential societies, commercial complexes, offices, hospitals, and schools. With thousands of installations and millions of devotees participating across the city, fire safety and emergency preparedness are concerns that go well beyond the traditional festival pandal.
As of Sunday morning, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has permitted 2,702 Ganpati mandals to set up their pandals across Mumbai, against the total applications received of 4,164. Additional Municipal Commissioner AvinashDhakne inspected immersion sites including Girgaum Chowpatty, Dadar Chowpatty, Juhu and Powai Lake to review civic facilities and safety arrangements. He also directed officials to inform mandals that the BMC provides cranes free of charge at immersion sites for Ganesh idols and encouraged organisers to use them.
The Sambhalpur fire incident and the Kurnool district fire incidents are stark reminders that every pandal across the nation should prioritise fire safety, evacuation preparedness, and life safety. It is not only about the Ganpati festivals; the upcoming year’s most celebrated festivals, such as Diwali, Navratri, and New Year’s Eve, should also have stricter fire safety and evacuation procedures.
Temporary electrical connections, decorative lighting, overloaded circuits, combustible decorative materials, incense, diyas and cooking arrangements are some of the potential fire hazards during festivals such as Ganpati and Diwali. Ganpati idols are being installed today in apartment complexes, corporate offices, hospitals and educational institutions, where celebrations can bring large numbers of people into enclosed and vertically structured spaces. So the risk is higher as evacuation involves large numbers of people on multiple floors, including children, senior citizens, patients and visitors.
The scale of the idols themselves is also changing. The Bhuleshwar incident, where a 22-foot Ganesh idol collapsed, killing two people and injuring five during the arrival ceremony, raised the need for more attention to structural stability, transportation, crowd management and emergency planning around large idols.
According to Dr Deepak Monga, a fire safety and evacuation expert, “Fire safety should not just be a box to be ticked off when the construction of a building is complete. It should be ingrained in the development process itself. In skyscrapers, commercial buildings, hospitals, or educational institutions, the right type of fire evacuation lift can complement the existing fire safety and evacuation plans in case of emergencies. A single fire evacuation lift in operation to serve the purpose can be of life-saving help and also minimise monetary losses.”
As Mumbai is witnessing a rise in the height of buildings and Ganpati idols, there is a need to change the way in which emergency planning is done. So, fire safety and fire evacuation lifts should not remain merely a box to tick on the compliance list but should be part of the architectural plan of the building instead. Also, the fire evacuation lift should meet the standards prescribed by the fire department, UDCPR and the energy department, rather than opting for an inadequate one to save money and risk lives.
This Ganesh Chaturthi, the message is simple: although the celebrations may shoot up in height, preparation for ensuring safety and evacuation should not be less than that.
