Meghalaya Fire License

As per the provisions of the Meghalaya Fire and Emergency Services Act, 2012, it is compulsory to possess a Fire License or No-Objection Certificate to obtain a building plan approval from the Local Municipal Authority. Meghalaya Fire and Emergency Services Department issues fire license to verify the conformity of requirements of fire safety measures of premises. In this article, we look at the procedure for obtaining Meghalaya fire license in detail.

Meghalaya Fire and Emergency Services Act, 2012

According to the Meghalaya Fire and Emergency Services Act, any person intending to hold construction/building of more than fifteen meters in height for business or commercial plans must apply for a fire no objection certificate to the Cheif Fire Officer. The form has to be duly authorised before submission along with the relevant building plans to the sanctioned authority which is the Local Municipal Corporation under the state law.

Purpose of Obtaining Fire License

An individual is required to get a fire license under the following conditions:

• Fire license is a needed for anyone seeking a trade license or an occupation certificate from the municipal body in the state.
• Fire license is obligated to carry out businesses and trading activities, as listed under the Department of Fire Services in Meghalaya.
• Fire license is required to verify that a building is resistant or unlikeliness to observe any fire-related accident.

Fire License Categories for Buildings

The following listed-out categories are required to obtain a Fire License in Meghalaya.

• Education buildings.
• Residential apartment buildings
• Hotels
• Hospitals and sanatoria
• Custodial institutions
• Telephone exchange
• Assembly buildings
• Multiplex buildings
• Business buildings
• Mercantile buildings
• Industrial buildings Low hazard
• Industrial buildings Moderate hazard
• Industrial buildings High hazard
• Storage buildings High hazard

Documents Required

The required documents are to be provided along with the application form.

• The application duly signed by the business owner reflecting the nature of the business, location and full postal address of the company establishing, telephone number/mobile number etc.
• Blue Print or drawing of the Building Plan, conferring the firefighting system, as required in National Building Code of India 2016 should be furnished along with the application.
• Certificate from the authorised /competent person certifying that all the Electrical Installations are in good working condition.
• Photocopy of previously issued NOC.

Online Application Procedure for Fire License

Applicants can apply online for fire license in the state of Meghalaya by following the steps mentioned below:

Visit the Official Portal

Step 1: Visit the official portal of Meghalaya Fire and Emergency Services Department.

Step 2: Click on “Application form ” tab which is present on the homepage of the portal.

Step 3: Select “Application for grant of Fire No Objection Certificate” from the list of the application form.

Download Application Form

Step 4: The application form for the Fire NOC will be downloaded from the website.

The application form for fire NOC is reproduced below for quick reference.

Step 5: Fill the application form with the prescribed details such as

• Building name
• Director name
• Name of Authorized coordinator.
• Industry type.

Upload the Documents

Step 6: After filling all the necessary details attach all the documents needed and submit the application form to the Fire and Emergency Service office.

Step 7: Then the applicant has to make payment at the time of applying.

Step 8: Upon submission, the applicant will be provided with the acknowledgement receipt as the confirmation.

Issuance of Fire License

On receipt of the form, the concerned officers from the Department of Fire and Emergency Service will set a date for regarding  Fire Safety Audit/Inspection of the building/premises of the business owner in ten days from the application. On completion of the first Inspection, Provisional NOC will be issued.

Meanwhile, a copy of Recommendation/Suggestion for implementation of Fire Safety Measures will be issued to the business owner who will be required to comply with the Recommendations/Suggestion and will submit Implementation and Compliance Report to the Fire & Emergency Service Department.

On receipt of the Implementation/Compliance Report. Declaration by Owner / Occupier of the building, Technical Officer will re-inspect the building/premises, and on the satisfaction of the Technical officer, recommendation for issuing of the No Objection Certificate will be submitted to the Head of the Department of Fire and  Emergency Service.

On the approval of the Head of the Department, No Objection Certificate will be issued to the business owner.

Renewal of Fire License

The fire license or no objection certificate is valid for one year from the date of issue. Hence, it has to be renewed every year. The Fire No objection certificate that can be renewed by downloading the application form for the renewal of Fire NOC from the Fire services department portal. Power of granting the license under this Act shall be exercised by the Licensing Authority or by such officer who may be authorised by the State Government in this behalf.

Penalty on Failure of Renewal

If a person fails to renew fire license within seven days from the expiry of the previous license, the assessing authority may impose a penalty which will be of Rs. 5/- charged per day.