No Fire Officer in Gujarat’s Capital Gandhinagar for Two Years

GANDHINAGAR, GUJARAT : The Rajkot game zone fire tragedy has cast a harsh spotlight on the lax approach to fire safety across Gujarat. In the state capital Gandhinagar, the post of fire officer has remained vacant for two years, raising concerns about fire safety management. The role is currently held by Kaizad Mehernosh Dastoor, originally a divisional fire officer with the Directorate of State Fire Prevention Services, who has been assigned additional duties as Gandhinagar’s fire officer.

The Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC) has seen significant growth, incorporating one municipality and 18 villages. Despite this expansion, there is a noticeable neglect of fire safety norms in both residential and commercial buildings. Many properties operate without the mandatory ‘No Objection Certificate’ (NOC) from the fire department. According to GMC’s property tax department, the corporation oversees 2 lakh registered properties, from which it collects taxes.

Further complicating the situation, Dastoor, the acting fire officer, is currently on leave. His responsibilities have temporarily been handed over to sub fire officer KJ Gadhvi, exacerbating the already critical shortage of dedicated fire safety oversight.

The vacancy in the fire officer position stems from a scandal involving the previous fire officer, Mahesh Mode. In January 2022, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) raided the Gandhinagar Fire and Emergency Services office, uncovering that Mode and his associate, Kamal Gadhvi, were accepting bribes to approve building plans and issue NOCs without proper inspections. Mode was caught accepting a bribe of ₹5 lakh from Raisan village in Gandhinagar. Besides his role as the fire officer, Mode also held the position of Deputy Director of Gujarat State Fire Prevention Services.

“The absence of a dedicated fire officer for such an extended period is alarming, especially given the rapid growth and increasing number of properties in Gandhinagar,” remarked a local resident. “The Rajkot tragedy should serve as a wake-up call to prioritize fire safety.”