Smoke barriers, stops: Delhi tightens fire safety rules, mandates 18 measures

Delhi has amended its Fire Service Rules to prescribe minimum safety standards for buildings. The changes tighten compliance after recent fatal fires and align norms with revised building bye-laws.

In Short

• Rules follow recent Delhi fire tragedies, including Malviya Nagar hotel blaze
• Fire engines require six-metre access routes under amended safety framework
• Measures include sprinklers, alarms, evacuation systems, refuge areas, fire lifts

The Delhi government has amended the Fire Service Rules to introduce a detailed set of minimum fire prevention and safety standards for buildings, including provisions for fire and smoke barriers, encroachment-free access, emergency power and dedicated fire control rooms.

The Delhi Fire Service (Amendment) Rules, 2026, notified by the Home Department on August 28, say these minimum standards will apply to buildings based on their height and class of occupancy and will be governed by the Building Bye-Laws.

The amendment comes after recent fire tragedies in the city, including the Malviya Nagar hotel fire in June in which 23 people, mostly foreign nationals, died.

Under the amended rules, if fire prevention and safety measures for a building are not specified in the Building Bye-Laws, the director of the Delhi Fire Services may require the owner or occupier to adopt additional measures in line with standards set by the fire prevention wing.

The government may also relax, modify or remove specific requirements for certain classes of occupancy or buildings in special areas.

The rules will come into force from the date on which the amended Unified Building Bye-Laws-2016 are notified by the DDA. The Home Department notification says applications pending on the date of commencement will continue to be processed under the provisions that were in force on the date they were submitted.

Officials said the amended rules list 18 categories of fire safety measures for buildings under provisions related to fire prevention, fire safety certification and the issue of no-objection certificates by the Delhi Fire Services and third-party auditors.

These include a minimum six-metre right of way for fire engines up to the premises, protection of exits through fire check doors or pressurisation, fire and smoke barriers, fire stops and smoke management systems.

Buildings will also have to provide fire extinguishers, first-aid hose reels, automatic fire detection and alarm systems, MOEFA, public address or voice evacuation systems and automatic sprinkler and fire suppression systems, wherever applicable.

The provisions also cover internal hydrants, including wet risers and down-comers, yard hydrants and ring mains, as well as fire pump houses with pumping arrangements and protected access for firefighters.

Other specified measures include captive water storage for firefighting, exit signage, floor numbering and reflective tape marking in corridors leading to exits.

The rules also provide for fire towers and fire lifts, along with emergency power for critical fire and life-safety systems such as pumps, pressurisation and smoke-venting systems, fireman’s lifts, emergency lighting, fire alarm systems, public address systems, magnetic door-hold-open devices and lighting in fire command centres.

Fire check floors and refuge areas, along with fire control rooms equipped with automated continuous monitoring systems, have also been included in the safety framework.

The amended rules also replace references to the National Building Code of India with Building Bye-Laws in Rule 29 of the Delhi Fire Service Rules, bringing the standards in line with the revised framework.

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