Surat Steps Up Fire Safety Checks After Lucknow Coaching Centre Blaze Kills 15

Seven years after a fire at a coaching centre in Surat claimed 22 lives, the city's fire department has launched a drive to inspect schools and coaching centres following a similar tragedy in Lucknow, where 15 people were killed on Monday.

Over 60 premises were inspected on Wednesday, and notices were issued to educational institutions for failing to comply with fire safety rules.

On May 24, 2019, 22 students died of suffocation, burns, or from jumping from the coaching centre after a fire broke out in the four-floor Takshashila Arcade in Surat's Sarthana area.

Dinesh Kevadiya, a textile businessman who lost his 17-year-old daughter Yashvi in that tragedy, filed a PIL in the Supreme Court in December last year. The petition seeks directions to prevent fire accidents and road accidents nationwide, naming the Centre, National Disaster Management Authority, and several ministries as parties.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Kevadiya said: "The void of my daughter will not be filled. After her birth, my struggles ended and I made progress in my work." He added, "In the PIL, I told the court that day by day, road accidents and fire incidents take place across the country, and innocent people die. After every such tragedy, a complaint is filed and some low-ranking officials are arrested, but no higher authority is held responsible. Something should be done, or a national policy should be framed to prevent such incidents."

The trial in the 2019 fire tragedy is still underway. Of the 14 arrested accused—including builders, occupants, and officials from the fire department, Surat Municipal Corporation, and Dakshin Gujarat Vij Company Limited—13 are out on bail, while one engineer has died.

On Monday, Surat Municipal Corporation's Chief Fire Officer Basant Pareek held a meeting with zonal heads. A strategy was devised, and officials were instructed to ensure fire safety norms are followed by educational institutions across the city.

Since Wednesday, dozens of fire officials have inspected schools, colleges, and coaching centres in all zones. They also conducted an awareness drive to inform students and teachers about fire escape procedures.

Notices were issued to institutions with non-functional fire safety equipment, directing them to repair or replace it. Many coaching centres lacking emergency exits were asked to address the issue urgently. Officials also checked fire No Objection Certificates and found that several institutions had not renewed them.

Chief Fire Officer Basant Pareek said: "We have started a drive to check fire safety in educational institutions after the Lucknow fire tragedy. The drive will take a couple more days as such institutions are large in numbers. Dozens of fire officials are involved."

Jaysukh Gajera, a real estate businessman who lost his daughter Grishma, 22, in the 2019 fire, has formed an NGO to fight the case.