New Delhi, June 5 (IANS): The Delhi High Court has directed the Delhi government to decide within four weeks on a representation to formulate basic fire safety norms, including the installation of sprinklers, for smaller hospitals and nursing homes in the national capital.

This directive came in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Yugansh Mittal.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet P.S. Arora ordered the Delhi government to treat the PIL as a representation and issue a reasoned decision in accordance with the law.

The court also mandated that an Action Taken Report be filed within eight weeks.

The PIL was prompted by the tragic incident on May 26 at the Baby Care New Born Hospital in Vivek Vihar, where a massive fire killed seven newborns.

Mittal's petition urged the authorities to inspect the smaller hospitals and nursing homes to ensure compliance with the fire safety norms established under the Delhi Fire Service Rules, 2010.

Mittal cited a news report indicating that out of nearly 1,000 hospitals registered with the Delhi government, only 196 possess a fire no-objection certificate (NOC).

He argued that basic fire safety measures, such as fire extinguishers and automatic fire alarms, should be mandatory for all buildings under nine metres in height, as their absence pose a significant threat to human life.

The Delhi government’s counsel expressed willingness to incorporate fair and just suggestions into the fire safety norms, acknowledging the non-adversarial nature of the proceedings.

Consequently, the court disposed of the petition with a directive to treat the plea as a representation and to decide the same by way of a reasoned order in accordance with the law within four weeks.

The next hearing for the monitoring of the Action Taken Report is scheduled for August 9.