The High Court of Delhi has directed the MCD to look into cases of dangerous iron grilles around houses and unauthorised structural projections which might hamper rescue operations during emergencies. The court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the identification and removal of such structures across the national capital.
A bench led by the Chief Justice, D.K. Upadhyaya, remarked that since the plea was too wide in its ambit, hence no sweeping direction could be issued for the removal of the iron grilles from all the private residential buildings. Rather, the court directed the MCD to consider the representation made by the petitioner and take a well-informed decision in light of the relevant law.
The application stated that installing cage-type iron grilles on balconies and windows, along with any other projection, posed a huge risk in case of an emergency because of their blockage of the way out. In this instance, the appeal pointed out that people had died in fire accidents in Delhi because of the blocked exit from their balconies.
However, bearing in mind the security concerns involved, the High Court believed that it was not able to issue any orders in the wake of an “omnibus” application. The High Court observed that any decision in connection with any residential premises would have to be on an individual basis.
This matter has now been taken up by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, which will consider the submission which is pending before it and decide on the need for any further regulation or enforcement action. The civic authority is supposed to consider whether the structure is violating any building rules or posing a hazard.
This discussion by the court is coming at a time when there have been many instances showing the fire safety problems of residential buildings. According to the fire safety experts, even though there are iron grilles installed in the houses as a safety measure, these iron grilles must not obstruct the path of any kind of emergency.
Though there have not been any clear instructions issued to the residents or the RWAs immediately, the case is likely to initiate new deliberations concerning how to achieve the fine balance between residential security and emergency preparedness. Also, the property owners may come under closer examination for any unlawful alterations made to the structures if the MCD conducts inspections. The case will be taken up by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) after reviewing the plea filed by the petitioner and the building safety regulations.
