How Can Small and Medium Businesses Improve Fire Safety Beyond Paper Processes?

Dear Colleagues,

Given the recent fire disaster in Bangalore, it appears that organizations within the building were not trained on how to react to hazards such as fire, resulting in numerous people jumping to their deaths.

As an HR professional and a representative of several small organizations, I believe it is our responsibility to provide real-life training/drills and background checks at the business location to ensure the safety of everyone in various hazardous situations, not just following written processes.

While bigger organizations may have a structured setup, my concern lies more with small and medium-sized organizations where such topics may not be high on their priority list.

I would like to highlight, through this forum, a list of mandatory regulations in buildings that employers must ensure are in place for any enterprise, along with suggestions on how employees and employers can be trained accordingly.

All ideas are welcome.

May this initiative lead to a safer workplace for everyone!

Thank you,

Ramya Suresh

Dear Ramya Suresh,

For commercial buildings in different industries, the mandatory regulations vary significantly. For instance, the National Building Code of India 2005 primarily comprises administrative regulations, development control rules, general building requirements, fire safety requirements, stipulations regarding materials, structural design, construction (including safety), and building and plumbing services.

The concerned States' Factories Act applies to industries within specific states, outlining all the regulations that must be followed concerning Fire Safety, etc.

I believe it would be beneficial to specify a particular building type first and then list all the mandatory requirements accordingly. Your insights on this topic would be greatly appreciated for a fruitful discussion.

Best regards,
Dipil Kumar V

Hi Ramya Suresh,

My name is Somnath, and I have gone through the information regarding fire and safety for small firms. It is certainly not considered as a high priority. Please guide us on the steps that should be followed, what training can be arranged, or provide a handbook for guidelines and practices, etc.

I am interested in sharing my input in this regard.

Thanks,
Somnath

Hello Dipil,

Thank you for your comment. Due to a system glitch, I was unable to view your response until this point. I think we should first begin the focus on the average small organization to assist organizations new to this aspect. Such offices are generally present in buildings with just 3-4 floors, where you have a few offices on every floor. We should also focus on the aspect of internal plans/drills that such personnel have, irrespective of the size of the building, so that they know how to react in emergency situations. Appreciate your inputs!

Thank you, Ramya

Hello Somnath,

Appreciate your response to the post. It is very important that people take steps seriously instead of having a "chalta hai" attitude, so that we can avoid such incidents and loss of life in the future. I think we can easily put together a program that talks about safety measures to be taken within and outside the office premises. This does not involve just rules and regulations; it is more about the practical application of such measures.

Please provide your contact information, and we can work out a program that will meet the needs of organizations based on individual office structures.

Thank you!

Ramya
Email: ramyas@pleasantservices.com

Hello Everyone!

Greetings from Malaysia. I am sorry to hear about the predicament in Bangalore. The Environment, Health & Safety Department (EHS) is a standalone department and typically reports to the Person In Charge (PIC), i.e., the CEO of the company concerned. This structure is in place to ensure that when a Business Continuity Plan or Emergency Response Plan (BCP/ERP) is created, the decision-maker is available to make all the necessary decisions.

Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the EHS department to ensure that an ERP is in place for any kind of incident, whether it be a natural disaster, pandemic, etc., as it is part of the EHS management for the entire company, among other responsibilities.