Fire safety in Himachal Pradesh

Fire requirements step up with height. These are the thresholds, the access a tender needs, and the installations each tier calls for.

What fire provisions does my building need?

<18 m: hose reel + 5,000 L terrace tank + 450 LPM pump. 18–35 m: down-comer + manual alarm + 25,000 L UG tank + 900 LPM pump. MOEFA required ≥24 m. NOC needed above 18 m or 400 m² floor area (guidelines) — App-7 Reg 13 triggers at 15 m.

HP Fire NOC Guidelines Table 7 — and 10 related rules below.

The rules — all 11

Fire-fighting installations by height

verbatim

<18 m: hose reel + 5,000 L terrace tank + 450 LPM pump. 18–35 m: down-comer + manual alarm + 25,000 L UG tank + 900 LPM pump. MOEFA required ≥24 m. NOC needed above 18 m or 400 m² floor area (guidelines) — App-7 Reg 13 triggers at 15 m.

HP Fire NOC Guidelines Table 7 · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²) · Appendix-1 (general buildings)
Tiers [{"max_h":18,"kit":"Hose reel; 5,000 L terrace tank; 450 LPM pump"},{"max_h":35,"kit":"Down-comer; manual fire alarm; 25,000 L UG tank; 900 LPM pump"}]
Moefa h 24
Noc h 18
Noc floor m2 400

Fire NOC

verbatim

Buildings above 15.00 m: Fire NOC from Director Fire Services required ONLY at Completion Stage; fire-safety self-declaration per HP Fire Safety Rules 2019 accompanies the application (Check List 23).

Appendix-7 (2022) Reg 16(i) · HP Fire Safety Rules 2019 · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²) · Appendix-1 (general buildings)
Height m 15

Fire-tender access & turning radius

verify

A 6.0 m wide hard-paved fire-tender path must reach every block, with 9.0 m turning radius at bends and head-room ≥5.0 m; gates ≥4.5 m wide.

NBC 2016 Part 4 §7 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Path m 6
Turning radius m 9
Headroom m 5
Gate m 4.5

Fire-escape staircase width

verify

Residential stair flights ≥1.5 m clear (matches App-7 Reg 13: 3.0 m total, 1.5 m per flight); riser ≤190 mm, tread ≥250 mm; handrails both sides.

NBC 2016 Part 4 Table 20 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Flight m 1.5

Maximum travel distance to exit

verify

Travel distance from any point to the nearest exit ≤30 m (residential, unsprinklered) / ≤45 m if sprinklered.

NBC 2016 Part 4 Table 22 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Max m 30
Sprinklered m 45

Fire pump room & water tanks

verbatim

<18 m: hose reel + 5,000 L terrace tank + 450 LPM pump. 18–35 m: down-comer + manual alarm + 25,000 L UG tank + 900 LPM pump + pump room. MOEFA ≥24 m.

HP Fire NOC Guidelines Table 7 (verbatim) · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²) · Appendix-1 (general buildings)
Tiers [{"max_h":18,"terrace_l":5000,"ug_l":0,"pump_lpm":450,"kit":"Hose reel; 5,000 L terrace tank; 450 LPM pump"},{"max_h":35,"terrace_l":5000,"ug_l":25000,"pump_lpm":900,"kit":"Down-comer; manual alarm; 25,000 L UG tank; 900 LPM pump; pump room"}]
Moefa h 24

Wet riser / down-comer

verify

Above 15 m: wet riser (100 mm) in each staircase with landing valves each floor; HP tiers: 18–35 m down-comer acceptable per Table 7.

HP Fire Guidelines + NBC Table 23 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Trigger h m 15

Fire lift

verify

Buildings above 15 m must provide a fire lift (545 kg / 8 persons min, fireman switch, solid doors) reachable within 60 s.

NBC 2016 Part 4 §5.2 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Trigger h m 15

Refuge areas

verify

Buildings above 24 m: refuge area ≥15 m² at the first floor above 24 m and every 7th floor thereafter, on an external wall.

NBC 2016 Part 4 §4.11 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Trigger h m 24
Area m2 15

Fire command centre

verify

Buildings above 30 m require a ground-floor fire command centre with panel, PA and communication.

NBC 2016 Part 4 §4.13 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Trigger h m 30

Basement / enclosed-parking smoke management

verify

Enclosed or basement parking requires mechanical smoke extraction (12 air changes/hr) and sprinklers if area >200 m².

NBC 2016 Part 4 §4.9 — verify · Appendix-7 (projects over 2,500 m²)
Ach 12
Sprinkler m2 200
8 of these 11 were encoded from secondary sources rather than read off the gazetted text — they carry a “verify” tag above. The engine applies them and the substance is believed correct, but confirm the exact figure against the notification before you build to it.
Worked example — a 500 m² plot on a 9 m road

Computed live by the same engine that produces the drawings — not a stored example.

9 m road 2 m rear 3 m front 2 2 319 m²

Drawn square for clarity. A real tatima is not square — that is what the tracer is for.

RegimeAppendix-1 (General Building)
FAR1.75
Setbacks (F / R / sides) 3 / 2 / 2 m
Buildable footprint319 m²
Height cap21 m
Storeys3
Permissible built-up 875 m²
Parking required9 ECS

500 m² × FAR 1.75 = 875 m² permitted. The 319 m² footprint over 3 storeys could hold 956 m², so FAR is the binding constraint — the height allowance is not fully usable here.

Sources on this page
  • HP Fire NOC Guidelines Table 7
  • Appendix-7 (2022) Reg 16(i) · HP Fire Safety Rules 2019
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 §7 — verify
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 Table 20 — verify
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 Table 22 — verify
  • HP Fire NOC Guidelines Table 7 (verbatim)
  • HP Fire Guidelines + NBC Table 23 — verify
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 §5.2 — verify
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 §4.11 — verify
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 §4.13 — verify
  • NBC 2016 Part 4 §4.9 — verify

Official text: HP Town and Country Planning Rules, 2014 ↗

Spotted something wrong?

Rules change and we would rather hear it from you than have somebody build to a stale number. No account needed.

Other topics in Himachal Pradesh
FAR & floor area Setbacks Ground coverage & land use Building height Parking & ECS Access & roads Services Structure & slope Rooms & ventilation Accessibility Approvals & RERA EWS & amenities

Does your plot comply?

Trace your tatima and these 11 rules — and the 69 others — are checked against your actual boundary, with the number behind each verdict.

Check my plot → All Himachal Pradesh rules →
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Answers come straight from the building rules for 12 states we cover, plus the glossary and calculators — each with its citation.