Smelling foul play in the mysterious fire which broke out in the Civil Secretariat at Jammu on Wednesday, the Jammu and Kashmir government constituted a one-member panel to inquire into the whole incident.
Headed by the Principal Secretary of the Estate Department Alok Kuma, the panel has been directed to submit its report to the General Administration Department within seven days.
Although the panel was constituted on Thursday, the official announcement in this regard was made on Friday by the J&K government.
According to an order issued by Dr. Piyush Singla Secretary to the Government, General Administration Department (GAD), the Inquiry Officer shall submit a report to the GAD within seven days.
- The Inquiry Office has to establish the cause of the occurrence of the fire incident.
- Cause of delay in controlling/extinguishing the fire.
- Whether the fire safety audit of the building had been carried out, as ordered in terms of Government Order No. 592-3K(GAD) of 2022 dated 21.05.2022, or otherwise.
- Whether the fire extinguishing equipment available on the premises was in working condition.
- The Inquiry Officer shall fix the responsibility for failure in activating response at various levels to control the fire in a timely manner.
The Inquiry Officer shall fix the responsibility for failure in activating response at various levels to control the fire in a timely manner.
A fire broke out mysteriously in Civil Secretariat on Wednesday
A fire broke out in the main building of the Civil Secretariat Jammu on Wednesday. The fire was reported from the retiring room of the vice chairperson of the Khadi and Village Industries Board Hina Shafi Bhat.
The fire started at the room on the top floor of the multi-floor building in the heart of the city around 1 pm on Wednesday.
A fire tender of the fire and emergency department, posted at the secretariat, was immediately pressed into service and was joined by fire tenders rushed from six other stations in the vicinity of the building, the officials said.
They said the fire was brought under control but a report about the cause of fire and the extent of damage was awaited. However, there was no casualty in the fire, the officials said.
Bhat said she noticed the fire in her retiring room after sensing the smell of burning wires and alerted the staff.
"The fire service was informed, and we also tried to douse the flames using the fire extinguishers," she said, indicating that the fire was caused by a short circuit.
