Urges industry to follow regulations and ensure no lapses occur
Panaji: Expressing grief over the major fire that killed 25 people at the ‘Birch by Romeo Lane’ nightclub in Arpora last December, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday urged the tourism and industrial sectors in the state to ensure that fire safety lapses do not recur.
Sawant urged businesses to strictly follow safety regulations and announced that the state’s existing training facility will be upgraded into a State Fire Training Academy to strengthen capacity-building.
“In order to make Goa fire-safe and disaster-resilient, everyone must adopt fire safety and responsibility,” Sawant said during a National Fire Service Day event held at the Goa State Fire Force Training Ground at St Inez, Panaji.
Sawant emphasised the government’s commitment to disaster response, noting plans to establish new stations in Sanguem and Dharbandora and enhance the 112 quick response system. He also highlighted the success of community empowerment initiatives, noting that the fire department has trained around 650 ‘Aapda Mitra’ and ‘Aapda Sakhi’ volunteers who have saved numerous lives.
Furthermore, zonal fire control rooms will be established for North Goa, South Goa and Kushavati, with specific control centres in Panaji, Margao and Curchorem.
In a move to streamline emergency services, the Chief Minister announced that the 101 fire emergency number will be integrated into the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) 112, creating a single helpline for police, fire and medical emergencies.
Nitin Raiker, Director of the Directorate of Fire and Emergency Services, said that during the 2025-26 financial year, the department attended to 8,021 incidents, including 2,942 fires and 5,079 other emergencies. “Through timely and coordinated action, our personnel saved 165 human lives and 874 animals,” Raiker said.
Raiker also announced that Fire Prevention Week will be observed from April 14 to 20, 2026, focusing on public awareness programmes. He urged the citizens to participate and enhance their safety knowledge to protect lives and property.
The National Fire Service Day programme began with a ceremonial parade, followed by a wreath-laying ceremony and a two-minute silence to honour the firefighters who died in the line of duty.
