Only 11 inspectors for over 73,000 lifts in Mumbai-Pune region

MUMBAI - There are only 11 inspectors to handle and inspect more than 73,000 lifts in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai and Pune region in Maharashtra, a query under the Right to Information (RTI) has revealed.

The RTI application was filed by a Mumbai-based activist Mohammad Afzal in January after his brother Mohammed Farooq, a diabetic with multiple clots in his brain, faced problems with the lift of their apartment building. Another reason that prompted him was increase in number of accidents involving lifts in the state.

Afzal, with another activist Krishnaraj Rao, conducted an inspection of the files in the lift department of Maharashtra government’s Public Works Department.

“According to Section 11 of Bombay Lifts Act, 1939, it is the responsibility of the Maharashtra government to inspect each lift twice a year, and recommend to the owner of the lift rectification of various faults. If necessary, it can order the closure of a lift that seems dangerous,” Afzal told IANS.

The information revealed that there are 73,324 registered lifts in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai and Pune region, and only 11 inspectors to handle them. Of those over 73,000 lifts, nearly 46,000 are in Mumbai and its suburbs alone, he said.

“It means around 6,500 lifts per inspector. Assuming that each inspector routinely inspects and reports on an average of 30 lifts per six-day week - a high average considering government holidays, casual leaves, the time taken to file reports, investigate accidents - it will take around four years to inspect each lift even once,” Afzal said.

“In other words, there is a need for at least eight times as many inspectors to ensure bare minimum compliance with the legal requirement of inspecting each lift twice a year,” he noted.

Krishnaraj Rao said that the lift departments list of defects is quite comprehensive. “However, for want of regular inspections by the statutory authority, such defects are not pointed out in time, and go unnoticed or are neglected by building societies or sloppy maintenance contractors,” he said.

“Because of this, the number of accidents involving lifts has increased. Ultimately, it is people’s lives that are in danger. Every year, new lifts are being registered but the department’s staff is same. Hope the government takes some steps before a big disaster takes place,” Rao added.

Another RTI activist Sunil Ahya, who analysed the accident log books from 2002 onwards, found that an overwhelming majority of the accidents have happened because of a technological flaw that allows lifts to start moving even when the door is open, or, alternatively, allows doors to open even when the lift is not in position.

“It is surely possibly to devise ways to make the door mechanism absolutely foolproof. It is shocking that in this day and age, we put up with such an obvious technological flaw that kills people,” he added.