Mumbai: Shashikant Kale removed as fire brigade chief within 3 months

Shashikant Kale. File pic

Within three months of being appointed as the Chief Fire Officer of the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB), Shashikant Kale was removed from the post on Wednesday. The charge has been given to his deputy Kailash Hiwrale. This happens just a day after his promotion was confirmed at the general body meeting held on Tuesday. Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal has also withdrawn Kale's recommendation for the President's Medal.

Kale was appointed on August 10 after the promotion of Prabhat Rahangdale, former chief of the MFB. Requesting anonymity, a senior BMC official said, "The officers and firemen of the Fire Brigade are honoured with the President's Medal on January 26. Kale had nominated himself for the award. He was removed after it was found that the information provided by him is misleading."

Sources said that the matter would be investigated by the Joint Commissioner (General Administration). Also, Chahal has written a letter to the Urban Development Department informing that the recommendation for the medal was withdrawn.

Fire safety discussed

However, this also comes after a heated discussion at the standing committee meeting on Wednesday over the way the City Centre Mall fire in South Mumbai was handled and corporators expressing dissatisfaction over the functioning of the MFB. "If malls are not fire safety compliant despite repeated notices sent to them, then boards should be put up saying, 'people should enter at their own risk'," a corporator suggested at the meeting.

Ravi Raja, leader of opposition, raised the issue of the MFB sending notices to 29 malls for not being fire safety compliant. "The fire brigade is not serious about fire safety compliances. They just send notices and leave the rest on the owner. They have to take responsibility," said Raja. He added, "Apart from sending notices, ask owners to shut malls for seven days and do the needful before opening them again." Congress corporator Asif Zakaria said, "The fire brigade just asks owners to do the needful on fire safety compliance but does not take responsibility if he/she fails to do it." Raish Sheikh, group leader of Samajwadi Party backed Zakaria and said, "I had filed a complaint against unauthorised structures in the mall a year-and-a-half back, but nothing was done." P Velarasu, additional commissioner of the BMC said, "We will submit a report on the City Centre Mall fire and about the notices that have been sent to the other malls."

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