Rawalpindi: The government has made it compulsory for all public and private housing societies to have water hydrants installed on their main roads, a news source reported. It is also now mandatory for high-rise buildings to have modern firefighting equipment located on their premises.
Owners of high-rise buildings that do not have firefighting equipment can face imprisonment up to 3 years, or a fine ranging between PKR 50,000 and PKR 100,000, or be charged with both.
The Civil Defence Department will begin a crackdown on the matter from April 1, 2019 onwards. The decision was taken during a meeting conducted in the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) headquarters, chaired by RDA Director General Mahr Hayat Malik.
The Civil Defence Department, as such, has been instructed to issue red notices to all the buildings not currently in possession of the required firefighting equipment. Then crackdown will be launched. The buildings that do not meet the requirements will be sealed and FIRs will be registered against their owners.
