Puri: Odisha Human Rights Commission Bimal Prasad Das has expressed concern over hotels, lodging houses and Dharmashalas in the Pilgrim town without adequate fire safety and fire prevention systems.
The Commission directed the collector of Puri to file a reply within four weeks time on the fire safety measures while observing that the lives of tourists are in danger.
The rights panel passed the order recently while adjudicating a public interest litigation filed by Beach Protection Council president Jagannath Bastia who alleged that over 200 hotels, lodging houses, eight huge market complexes including Bhakta Nivas hotels being run by Srimandir were running without fire safety and fire prevention system.
He prayed the commission to issue direction to director general fire services and other concerned officers to seal these commercial establishments and cancel their building plans as they did not comply with the building norms.
Bastia further prayed before the commission to direct the Puri Collector to initiate legal action against officials responsible for allowing the people to run their illegal commercial ventures.
