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By:

C.S. Krishnamurthy

21 June 2025 at 2:15:51 pm

When Safety Fails

The devastating fire at a lodging facility in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, which claimed 21 lives, had barely faded from public memory when another catastrophe unfolded in Lucknow. Fifteen students and staff members perished after a blaze engulfed a 3D animation centre housed in a commercial building in Aliganj. Several others sustained injuries, with some jumping from the first floor in desperate attempts to escape. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi...

When Safety Fails

The devastating fire at a lodging facility in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, which claimed 21 lives, had barely faded from public memory when another catastrophe unfolded in Lucknow. Fifteen students and staff members perished after a blaze engulfed a 3D animation centre housed in a commercial building in Aliganj. Several others sustained injuries, with some jumping from the first floor in desperate attempts to escape. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief, a high-level inquiry was announced. Property owners and officials came under scrutiny. Yet, amid the familiar expressions of anguish and promises of accountability, an unsettling question surfaced once again. Why do such disasters continue to recur despite countless lessons from the past? Initial reports indicated that the Lucknow fire may have been caused by a short circuit. Eyewitnesses alleged that fire services took nearly forty minutes to arrive, by which time flames had engulfed the entire building. Wooden interiors reportedly accelerated the spread of the blaze. In Delhi, preliminary investigations suggested that the six-room Bed and Breakfast establishment had expanded into a 26-room operation, while a licence issued for a tea stall allegedly covered a full-fledged restaurant. The similarities are too striking to ignore. Buildings become death traps not overnight, but through years of accumulated violations, administrative indifference and societal complacency. Shared Burden From the Karol Bagh hotel fire of 2019 to the Mundka commercial complex tragedy in 2022, the Vivek Vihar neonatal hospital fire in 2024 and now the twin horrors of Delhi and Lucknow, a disturbing pattern emerges. Regulations exist. Investigations follow. Arrests are made. Yet prosecutions move slowly, and memories fade until the next tragedy strikes. Blaming owners alone provides only partial answers. Legal responsibility undoubtedly rests with them, but the failures are institutional as much as individual. How do multiple violations continue in plain sight? How do unauthorised expansions, blocked exits, unsafe electrical systems and inadequate fire protection remain unnoticed by agencies entrusted with public safety? Even Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra admitted that it was impossible that nobody knew what was happening at the Malviya Nagar property. The Municipal Corporation, police, tourism department and fire authorities all possessed pieces of the regulatory puzzle, yet the complete picture escaped attention until lives were lost. Economics compounds the problem. Businesses often prioritise profitability over compliance. Tenants seeking premises focus on affordability and location. Consumers seldom ask whether a restaurant, coaching centre or hotel possesses valid fire clearances or emergency exits. Safety becomes somebody else’s responsibility. Sadly, this indifference extends even to hospitals, schools and care centres, where vulnerable individuals have little chance of escape during emergencies. Preventive Governance Experts increasingly argue that India must move from reactive firefighting to preventive governance. Japan offers an instructive example. Following devastating earthquakes and fires, stringent regulations were supplemented by independent certification systems and insurance mechanisms. Buildings that fail to comply face financial consequences. Safety is viewed not as a burden but as an investment. Several Indian cities have also begun employing technology-driven solutions. Geographic Information Systems and digital platforms now allow public access to approvals and fire safety clearances in selected zones. Transparency enables both authorities and citizens to verify whether establishments operate within permissible limits. Yet technology alone cannot compensate for weak enforcement. Routine inspections have often been diluted in the name of ease of doing business. Random audits become paper exercises. Fire drills are conducted merely to satisfy procedural requirements. Such cosmetic compliance creates an illusion of preparedness without guaranteeing actual safety. Perhaps the most urgent reform required is cultural rather than administrative. Safety must cease to be treated as an inconvenience. Emergency exits cannot serve as storage spaces. Electrical systems cannot remain neglected. Structural audits cannot be optional. Societies are ultimately judged not merely by how efficiently they punish the guilty after disasters, but by how effectively they prevent avoidable deaths. Every tragedy leaves behind grieving families and solemn promises. Delhi and Lucknow are separated by hundreds of kilometres, yet both tell the same painful story. Human lives were extinguished not simply by fire, but by a chain of compromises stretching across institutions, businesses and society itself. The true measure of progress lies not in the speed with which compensation is announced or arrests are made. It lies in ensuring that safety never becomes an afterthought and that convenience, profit and administrative complacency never outweigh the sanctity of human life. (The writer is a retired banker and author. Views personal.)

Caste-based Census Sparks Nationwide Debate

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

Caste-based Census

Caste-based identities continue to dominate rural India, directly or indirectly shaping electoral outcomes. Many major elections are influenced by specific caste groups. After the Bihar government released the first phase of its caste-based socio-economic survey, the caste census became a hot topic. The results, backed by evidence, showed improvements in the living standards and social status of marginalised communities, both in cities and villages. With parties like the JDU and NCP backing a caste census, there is growing momentum for the government to conduct one. However, every story has two sides—joy and sorrow. Even Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation, raised concerns about the caste census.

Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP of being “anti-Bahujan.” The clear meaning is that his father and forefather refused to execute a caste-based census, which might have far-reaching effects and even permanently fracture India’s social fabric. This may be negative for caste-based beneficiaries. The last caste census in India was conducted in 1931 by the British government. Those times were different from the present scenario. The data was made public and became the basis for the Mandal Commission Reports and reservation policies for Other Backward Classes. Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has clarified that the caste-based population count data will not be used for core politics. But the agenda for politics is always twisted and expanded.

The Central Government also joined the legal debate by filing an affidavit with the Supreme Court, leaving the matter unresolved. India’s partition, rooted in the divide-and-rule strategy, is frequently cited as a cautionary tale. Including caste in official census data could further deepen social divides. This issue has become a political pressure point, with various states pushing the Centre for action. Although the Constitution uses the term “class” instead of “caste,” the Supreme Court has consistently ruled that caste is a relevant, and at times, sole or dominant criterion for defining a backward class.

After the release of caste-based census data in Bihar, discussions around conducting similar censuses have gained momentum in states like Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand. Karnataka, which has already conducted its own caste census, may release its data soon as well.

Notably, all these states are governed by anti-BJP parties. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also announced that Congress-ruled states have committed to carrying out caste censuses. Meanwhile, the BJP has remained silent on the matter, creating a significant roadblock.

Caste-based censuses focus on proportional representation in areas like jobs and education, with the argument that this will aid in targeted planning for the disadvantaged. However, the situation remains unclear, much like a foggy winter morning. The BJP’s stance on caste-based censuses and reservations seems different, as they fear the caste-based calculations could fragment their traditional Hindu voter base—an underlying concern for the party.

Professor Sanjay Kumar from The Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, says, “Let alone the BJP; no party can openly oppose it; it is not free from danger. BJP gets a large number of votes from the OBC community, their population across the country would be around 52%. Another downside is that the caste-based censuses could disrupt the balance of socio-economic zones. Data theft is a common issue in government systems, and people may feel disconnected from their actual rights.

The moot question is that if the financial status of an ST/SC/OBC or Dalit citizen moves up by a few notches, will his social status change automatically? The lifestyle of any class will only change when the income of a particular class is changed. The actual source of income is employment. The reality is that only metro cities have enough place and space for workers. Aside from the GIDC and IT sectors, less than 30% of industries have their own designated vacancy periods. After a decade, the Jamnagar and Rajkot Corporations have opened their doors to newcomers alongside experienced staff. However, age and caste bias often operate behind the scenes. It’s important to recognise that poverty is also widespread among many upper-caste individuals, and their needs cannot be overlooked. In the overall interests of the nation, terms like SC/ST/OBC, Dalits, etc. must be deleted from the nation’s vocabulary. Every citizen should have only one classification, that of being an ‘Indian’, in the spirit of the constitution.

Last year, when the Bihar government decided to conduct a caste survey in the state, the BJP was also Nitish Kumar’s partner in the state government, and it supported it. Political expert and former professor of Tata Institute of Social Science, Pushpendra Kumar, says, “It is not that the BJP does not talk about caste. It tries to reveal the caste of the Prime Minister as well. For caste politics, the BJP also tried hard to raise the issue of Pasmanda Muslims.”

(The writer is a management professional based in Ahmedabad. Views personal.)

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