Hotel sealed top floor with wall during inspection, later demolished it to run eatery: Official
New Delhi, Feb 12: The fifth floor of 'Hotel Arpit Palace', where a massive fire snuffed 17 lives, was being used as a rooftop restaurant which was "unauthorised", officials said Tuesday.
The fifth floor was sealed with a brick wall after which a fire safety certificate was issued, officials said and indicated that later the wall was demolished to run the rooftop restaurant.
They said the fifth floor was shaded with acrylic roof and being used as a terrace restaurant by the hotel management and added that kitchen and chairs were found by them during the fire fighting and cooling operations.
"The fifth floor was sealed with brick wall when a fire safety certificate was issued to Hotel Arpit Palace on December 12, 2014," said a Delhi Fire Service (DFS) officer.
Later, a re inspection was done by the DFS on December 4, 2017, and the owner was "deemed complied" with fire safety norms at the hotel premises and it was declared "fit" for "occupancy class residential"(guesthouse) with effect from December 24, 2017 for a period of three years, he said.
"Apparently, the wall used to seal the fifth floor was dismantled and it was being used for a terrace restaurant," the official said.
The fire safety certificate was issued only for basement being used as storage, ground floor which was used for a restaurant and reception, first and second floor having 12 guest rooms each, third and fourth floor having 11 guest rooms each, he added.
A massive fire swept through the four-storied hotel in the early hours of Tuesday, killing at least 17 guests, including two people who jumped off the building in a desperate bid to save themselves.
A child was among those killed in the blaze that started on the first floor of the hotel in the heart of the national capital around 3.30 am, trapping many guests who were in deep sleep, a fire official said.
The child as well as the two people who jumped are yet to be identified.
Preliminary investigation suggested a suspected short circuit may have sparked the fire, in which 35 people were injured, civic officials said.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
