KARACHI: The Sindh Education Department has issued fire safety guidelines for private schools across the province following the Gul Plaza tragedy.
In a notification, the School Education Department on Tuesday directed the immediate implementation of the instructions in all private educational institutions.
The guidelines make it mandatory to install fire alarms, smoke detectors, and fire extinguishers. Schools have also been instructed to keep emergency exits and staircases open and clearly marked.
The directive states that regular inspection of electrical systems in schools will be obligatory. Schools have also been ordered to display emergency evacuation plans at prominent locations.
According to the issued instructions, conducting fire drills at least twice a year has been made compulsory. Fire safety training for teachers and staff has also been declared mandatory.
The guidelines further direct schools to ensure special safety arrangements for students with special needs. The determination of an assembly point has also been made obligatory.
The Sindh Education Department said strict action will be taken against schools that fail to comply with the instructions.
A huge blaze gutted Gul Plaz on January 17 at night, following which the landmark shopping mall — a multi-storey complex of 1,200 family-run shops selling children’s clothes, toys, crockery and household goods — was reduced to ash. More than 70 bodies have been recovered, and a search is ongoing to recover more.
