Civic chief Aseem Gupta has informed members of the standing committee, that out of nearly 925 hotels (including bars and restaurants) in Thane, 800 are operational without obtaining the mandatory No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the fire department. All these restaurants have been operating from a place that either does not have an occupancy certificate (OC) or commencement certificate (CC). Enquiries with the fire department revealed that they have issued NOC to merely 125 hotels. The OC is a document issued by the local municipal authority to certify the compliance of the building according to the plans and specifications for occupancy. As per the norms, occupation of any property without OC is liable for penalty and termed as “illegal”.
The development has come as great relief for the Thane police that had cancelled the licences of many bars and hotels due to non-compliance of fire safety norms.
