Kamala Mills fire: 3 more civic officials held guilty

An inquiry into the Kamala Mills Fire of 2017, on Thursday, charged three more civic employees as guilty, after nine officials were held guilty earlier in November 2018. Assistant Municipal Commissioners of G South ward, Bhagyashree Kapse and Prashant Sapkale, have been held accountable for poor supervision in their ward, along with medical officer of health (MOH), G South ward, who was suspended after the incident.

A fire had erupted in the Kamala Mills compound on December 29, 2017, destroying two restaurants, killing 14 and injuring several others. While the serious charges on Kapse and Sapkale — not checking unauthorised construction and approving licenses without verification — have been dropped in the report drafted by Additional Municipal Commissioner Vijay Singhal conducting this inquiry, the MOH has been held guilty of such offences among various other charges.

A show-cause notice with a 15-day deadline will soon be issued to all three officers by Singhal. In November last year, nine officers were found guilty. The final quantum of their punishment will soon be decided by civic chief Ajoy Mehta and a report in this regard will be submitted to the High Court-appointed committee in the Kamala Mills fire. The BMC had suspended five officials immediately after the incident.

A senior civic official not willing to be named said that the lapses by civic employees were serious. "Once they send their replies, Singhal will draft the final report and the punishments will be decided by Mehta." AMC Prashant Sapkale said that he had not yet received any instructions and thus wouldn't comment on it. Bhagyashree Kapse was unavailable for comment.

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