Rajkot, May 28 (IANS): After a massive fire at a gaming zone in Rajkot claimed at least 28 lives on Saturday, the Gujarat government has now issued a directive to register cases against the owners of all such establishments that are being run flouting the norms.

According to the directive, cases will be filed against those lacking NOCs during the verification process, invoking strict sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and imposing non-bailable clauses.

The directive has been sent to all the collectors and municipal commissioners across the state for immediate enforcement. Subsequently, the district police chiefs have been notified, with explicit instructions to register cases and take stringent action against the violators.

The mandate requires a thorough inspection of all the locations where large gatherings take place, including temples, mosques, schools, colleges, malls, theaters, food markets, densely populated areas, and gaming zones.

The police and revenue officials will conduct joint verifications at each location to assess the status of fire NOCs.