CHENNAI: More than 1,400 hospitals run by Tamil Nadu government across the state do not have a valid fire safety licence, and 538 more are pending renewal, the state government has conceded in the Madras high court.
And, out of 1,938 hospitals that are mandated to have ramp, only 668 hospitals have such facility, the authorities submitted in response to a PIL moved by Jawaharlal Shanmugam seeking direction to ensure ramp and fire safety facilities in all government run multi-storied hospitals.
When the plea came up for hearing before the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice PT Asha, the government further submitted that it had proposed to establish such facilities in all the government run hospitals at a cost of Rs 89 crore.
“Firefighting arrangements will be made in 34 government medical college hospitals and institutions at a cost of Rs 37 crore, and in Chennai the Institute of Child Health and Hospital for Children and Institute of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Government Hospital for women and children the same facility will be made available at a cost of Rs 4 crore,” the authorities said.
1,400 TN hospitals lack fire safety licence: Government to HC Besides this, Rs 2.9 crore has been allotted to provide such facilities in Thiruvannamali hospitals and Kanniyakumari Medical college and Hospital would be allotted Rs 1.5 crore, the authorities added.
About 1,877 hospitals have the valid fire safety license and 538 hospitals had renewal pending and 1,400 hospitals have no valid fire safety license at the time of inspection. Similarly, 3,808 hospitals have fire safety plan/patient evacuation plan and displayed it and 2,023 hospitals either had no plan or not displayed them in their campus, they added. Out of 1,939 multi-storied hospitals, 1,059 has usable ramp provision and 880 has no such facility. Out of 1,938 hospitals that are mandated to have ramp only 668 hospitals have both valid fire safety license and ramp facility. The remaining hospitals either did not have either valid fire safety license or ramp facility in their campus, the affidavit added.
Recording the submission, the bench adjourned the plea to July 30.
In March last, the bench granted three months’ time to the state government for ensuring compliance of its earlier order to provide ramps and firefighting equipment in the hospitals.
Pursuant to the direction the health and family welfare department conducted inspection across the state and has filed the status report.
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