Telangana HC Seeks Affidavit On Measures To Prevent Repeat Of RIMS Fire Tragedy
A division bench of Acting Chief Justice P. Sam Koshy and Justice Suddala Chalapathi Rao directed that the affidavit be filed by an officer not below the rank of secretary and adjourned the matter to November 5.
Hyderabad:The Telangana High Court on Thursday directed the state government to submit an affidavit detailing the measures taken to prevent a recurrence of the fire accident at the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Adilabad, in which five infants died and 22 others were injured.
A division bench of Acting Chief Justice P. Sam Koshy and Justice Suddala Chalapathi Rao directed that the affidavit be filed by an officer not below the rank of secretary and adjourned the matter to November 5.
The directions came on two interlocutory applications filed by senior advocate Chikkudu Prabhakar in a pending public interest litigation concerning fire safety in government hospitals. The applications sought compensation of `50 lakh each for the families of the five infants who died in the fire that broke out in the children’s ward of RIMS on September 21.
Prabhakar submitted that the authorities had failed to provide adequate safety measures and essential medical facilities at the hospital despite an earlier division bench order dated October 15, 2024.
Counsel also sought directions to the authorities to submit a compliance report on the fire-safety guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court and the Rajasthan High Court, obtain fire no-objection certificates (NOCs) and conduct fire-safety audits of all government hospitals across Telangana.
Relying on Supreme Court judgments, counsel argued that the families were entitled to public law compensation for the alleged violation of fundamental rights. He also sought action, in accordance with law, against officials found responsible for the incident.