Fire NOC for a godown: hazard class, market godowns, licences and hazardous stock

Fire NOC for a godown at a glance: 10 facts

Where state law names a godown, timber mart or scrap yard: 15 regimes

Getting a godown's fire NOC and licence in 7 steps

1. 1

   List the goods and their quantities

   Annex B classes a godown by what it holds: non-combustible goods G1, general goods G2, combustible or flammable goods G3. Note every drum, cylinder and kilogram of fireworks.

2. 2

   Check the quantity laws first

   Class B petroleum above 2,500 litres, gas for own use above 25 cylinders, and fireworks for sale at any quantity need a licence under the PESO laws; a fireworks store house of up to 5,000 kg goes to the Controller of Explosives.

3. 3

   Measure the godown and the building around it

   Delhi counts 250 m² over all floors and 100 m² for hazardous premises; Lakshadweep 500 m²; Goa and Uttar Pradesh have no area line for storage.

4. 4

   Separate the godown from homes and offices

   NBCS 2026 does not permit storage beside residential, educational, institutional, assembly or business use, and asks 120 minutes' separation from a shop.

5. 5

   Apply for the municipal licence with the fire file

   In Mumbai apply 3 months ahead, since the Licence Department consults the fire brigade; in Delhi keep the MCD's section 417 licence current, since a lapsed one led to a sealing notice in an NGT case; in Assam the trade licence follows the Fire Safety Certificate.

6. 6

   File the fire NOC or fire licence

   Upload the site plan, list of goods, ownership papers and fire installation details on the state portal. The full checklists are on the documents page.

7. 7

   Renew on the godown's own cycle

   West Bengal's fire licence and Mizoram's godown licence run 1 year; Odisha's certificate 2 years; a Mumbai licence can be renewed for 2 years at a stretch if not hazardous.

Godown words in fire and licence law: G1 to G3, katra, licensed premises

The word on the file decides who licenses a godown and what it must fit. These 9 come from NBCS 2026, Mumbai's Schedule M and the state laws.

GGodown, low hazard (G1)

A godown or warehouse storing non-combustible goods only, in NBCS 2026 Annex B. 2BIS, SP 7:2026

GGodown, moderate hazard (G2)

Any godown not in the low or high lists; Annex B Note 1 puts an unlisted use in the class it most resembles. 2BIS, SP 7:2026

GGodown, high hazard (G3, sub-category A)

A godown storing combustible or flammable goods. Paint and varnish storage and water-reactive chemical stores sit in the same column. 2BIS, SP 7:2026

GGroup J hazardous

Storage of LPG, explosives, highly flammable liquids, or gases above 0.1 N/mm² and 70 m³. A godown holding them leaves Group H. 2BIS, SP 7:2026

KKatra

An old-city market compound of shops and stores. West Bengal's notification 279 of 2003 names markets and katras as high-risk occupancies. 11West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services

LLicensed premises (Mumbai)

Only the rooms, sheds, godowns or open spaces named in the section 394 licence. A loft, mezzanine or second godown of the same licensee is not licensed. 3MCGM Schedule M

GGeneral Trade/Storage Licence (Delhi)

The MCD licence issued under section 417 of the DMC Act, 1957, by its Central Licensing and Enforcement Cell; the one filed with the NGT was issued on 22 August 2024 and ran to 31 March 2025. 5NGT, MCD report

FFire licence (West Bengal)

A yearly licence from the Collector under section 12 for any premises storing or processing inflammable or hazardous substances, priced by storage area. 10WBFES

IIsolated storage

A store of a hazardous chemical not tied to a process plant, once it holds the quantities in Schedule 2 of the MSIHC Rules, 1989. 7MSIHC Rules 1989

Godown hazard class by what it stores: NBCS 2026 Annex B

Annex B was read off the page images, pages 124 to 127. It sorts 12 storage uses into 3 classes; what the godown holds today decides the class, not what it held at approval.

Annex B is a fire-hazard list only; the annex says chemical hazard and pollution are classed under other rules. NBCS 2026 is voluntary unless a state adopts it; the fire systems each class needs are set out on the warehouses page.

The market godown: from the shop's loft to the katra, 6 rules that apply

Most old-market godowns sit above, behind or below a shop in a mixed building. These 6 rules decide how the fire law reaches them.

Godown licence fees: Mumbai Schedule M and other official schedules

Mumbai's rows were read off the page images of the Licence Department's schedule. They are yearly licence fees, separate from the fire brigade's compliance fee.

FCI grain godowns: extinguishers and buckets by tonnage

The Food Corporation of India scales first-aid fire equipment by the godown's capacity in metric tonnes, and sends the type and placement to the local fire officer. These are the 7 tiers in its depot SOPs; the minor equipment runs from soda acid, foam and CO2 extinguishers to sand buckets, fire hooks and fire beaters.

• Up to 1,500 MT

  3 extinguishers

  And 15 fire buckets. 4FCI depot SOPs

• 1,501 to 3,000 MT

  4 extinguishers

  And 20 fire buckets. 4FCI depot SOPs

• 3,001 to 5,000 MT

  6 extinguishers

  And 30 fire buckets. 4FCI depot SOPs

• 5,001 to 10,000 MT

  8 extinguishers

  And 40 fire buckets. 4FCI depot SOPs

• 10,001 to 15,000 MT

  10 extinguishers

  And 50 fire buckets. 4FCI depot SOPs

• 15,001 to 25,000 MT

  15 extinguishers

  And 75 fire buckets. 4FCI depot SOPs

• Above 25,000 MT

  25 extinguishers

  And 125 fire buckets. Type and placement are fixed with the local fire officer, and the equipment must meet BIS specifications. 4FCI depot SOPs

Chemical, fuel and firecracker godowns: the quantity that brings in PESO or MSIHC

In a hazardous-goods godown, the quantity stored decides which national licence applies on top of the fire NOC. For fireworks held in bulk, the Explosives Rules cap a store house at 5,000 kg; a shop's limits are on the shops page.

PESO's licensing guideline prints the LE-3 scope as "exceeding 5000 kg"; the Rules say "not exceeding", unchanged by the amendments of 2019 to 2026, and the Rules prevail. The Chief Controller or a Controller of Explosives grants that licence, after construction approval under rule 101 with plans showing safety distances and a licence under rule 105; a shop selling up to 100 kg goes to the District Magistrate in Form LE-5 instead. The Rules, G.S.R. 907(E) of 29 December 2008 as amended on 9 January 2019, prevail over the guideline. Chemicals stored away from a process plant are isolated storage under the MSIHC Rules, 1989: a site holding the Schedule 2 column 3 quantity, such as 10 t of chlorine, 50 t of flammable gases, 350 t of ammonium nitrate or 5,000 t of extremely flammable liquids, is a major accident hazard installation with an on-site emergency plan, and one occupier's stores less than 500 m apart are added together. West Bengal licenses LPG storage at Rs 10,000 a year up to 10,000 kg, and Mumbai's Schedule M licenses compressed and liquefied gases from Rs 315 up to 250 kg. Petrol and diesel free limits are on the warehouses page.

Timber, scrap, hay and jute godowns: 4 dos and 4 don'ts

Yards of wood, scrap, fodder and fibre carry high fire loads and sit in Annex B's top class. These 8 points come from the codes and Mumbai's schedule.

Godown fire safety checklist for a market or depot godown: 12 items

These 12 points come from FCI's depot SOPs, NBCS 2026, West Bengal's licence rules and Mumbai's licence notes. An inspecting officer checks each of them in a godown.

Does your godown need a fire NOC or licence? 10 cases

Match the godown's state, size and stock to one line. Where a city licenses the stock, the licence comes before or beside the fire NOC.

1. If A 150 m² godown of plastics above a shop in Sadar Bazar, Delhi

   Under Rule 27's 250 m² storage line. If the Delhi Fire Service treats the stock as hazardous, the line drops to 100 m². The MCD issues its section 417 trade and storage licence separately. Fire NOC Delhi 14DFS

2. If A 300 m² timber godown in Mumbai

   A section 394 licence for timber, Rs 5,015 a year at 200 to 400 m², issued after the fire brigade is consulted. Fire NOC Maharashtra 3MCGM Schedule M

3. If A 1,200 sq ft cotton and paper godown in Burrabazar, Kolkata

   A yearly fire licence from the Collector, Rs 10,000 in the 1,000 to 5,000 sq ft band; the market building itself is a high-risk occupancy. Fire NOC West Bengal 8WB notification 1338

4. If A storage godown in Cuttack

   A certificate from a Deputy Fire Officer, valid 2 years, under row 12 of the 2019 order. Fire NOC Odisha 20Order 50908 of 2019

5. If A 400 m² godown in Kavaratti

   Not on area: Lakshadweep's storage line is 500 m². If it stores petroleum, LPG, gases, chemicals or fireworks, it needs a NOC at any size. Fire NOC Lakshadweep 21Lakshadweep Gazette Extraordinary Vol. LXII No. 42, 3 September 2026

6. If A scrap yard in Margao

   A fire NOC from the Divisional Officer within 10 days; Goa lists scrap yards as a service. Fire NOC Goa 18Goa Gazette 2022

7. If A timber mart in Jammu

   Use class C4 under the 2021 bye-laws, so a fire NOC is required. Fire NOC Jammu and Kashmir 16J&K H&UDD

8. If A godown in Guwahati needing a trade licence

   The District Commissioner issues the trade licence only after the Fire Safety Certificate (rule 18). Fire NOC Assam 2026 22Assam Rules 2025

9. If A firecracker wholesaler's store house of 4,000 kg for its own shops

   Within the 5,000 kg store-house cap: a Form LE-3 licence from the Controller of Explosives, besides the state fire NOC. Above 5,000 kg the building is no longer a store house under rule 2(55). Fire NOC for Shop 1Explosives Rules 2008

10. If A 900 m² godown in Ahmedabad under 15 m

    Godowns over 250 m² under 15 m are in Table 1; a Specialist Fire Safety Officer certifies. Fire NOC Gujarat 23Gujarat Fire Safety Compliance Portal

What an unlicensed or lapsed godown risks: 6 penalties

Godown penalties come as much from the municipal licence as from the fire Act. These 6 are from official texts.

Petroleum Act and fire Act penalties that apply to every storage building are on the warehouses and penalties pages.

Where godowns fail, and the fix: 7 cases

Godown failures are mostly about stock and paperwork drifting from what was approved. These 7 come from the codes, licence notes and the reported fires.

Godown fire NOC and licence worked cases: 7 godowns

Flamekite's reading of the rules for 7 example godowns; the godowns are illustrations, the figures are the instruments'.

1. Case 1

   A 150 m² warehousing godown in Masjid Bunder, Mumbai

   General goods on one floor.

   What applies Rs 7,560 for the first 100 m² plus Rs 1,910 for the next 50 m², so Rs 9,470 a year, and a Rs 3,000 security deposit (Flamekite's arithmetic). 3MCGM Schedule M

2. Case 2

   A 250 m² scrap godown in Kurla, Mumbai

   Iron and metal scrap.

   What applies Rs 1,770 a year in the 200 to 300 m² band; flammable scrap inside a building is compartmented under NBCS 2026. 3MCGM Schedule M

3. Case 3

   An 8,000 MT FCI godown

   Foodgrain in bags.

   What applies In the 5,001 to 10,000 MT tier: 8 extinguishers and 40 fire buckets, placed with the local fire officer, checked every quarter. 4FCI depot SOPs

4. Case 4

   A 1,200 sq ft godown in a Kolkata market

   Cotton and paper stock.

   What applies Fire licence Rs 10,000 a year in a municipal corporation area, valid 1 year, renewed in the expiry month. 8WB notification 1338

5. Case 5

   A chemical trader's godown holding 12 t of chlorine

   Isolated storage, no process plant.

   What applies Above the 10 t column 3 line of MSIHC Schedule 2, so a major accident hazard installation with an on-site emergency plan. 7MSIHC Rules 1989

6. Case 6

   A 4,000 kg fireworks store house

   Held for transfer to the owner's licensed shops.

   What applies Form LE-3 from the Chief Controller or a Controller of Explosives, after construction approval under rule 101. 6PESO SOP

7. Case 7

   A 100 kg cracker stock in a Mumbai shop

   Fireworks of all kinds.

   What applies Schedule M licence Rs 2,155 a year at 75 to 125 kg, besides the District Magistrate's LE-5 licence. 3MCGM Schedule M

Godown fire rules in numbers

• 3

  Annex B hazard classes a godown can fall in: G1, G2 or G3 2BIS, SP 7:2026

• 100 m²

  Hazardous premises above which Delhi asks for a fire certificate 14DFS

• Rs 63,000

  Highest yearly Mumbai licence fee for keeping a warehouse 3MCGM Schedule M

• 5 m²

  Timber a Mumbai trader may keep without a licence 3MCGM Schedule M

• 125

  Fire buckets FCI scales for a godown above 25,000 MT 4FCI depot SOPs

• 5,000 kg

  Fireworks in a store house above which the Controller of Explosives licenses 6PESO SOP

• 500 m

  Distance within which one occupier's chemical stores are added together under MSIHC 7MSIHC Rules 1989

• 19

  High-risk occupancies in West Bengal's 2003 notification, markets and katras among them 11West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services

Godown fire and licence rules, dated: 1962 to 2026

Twelve dated steps behind what a godown owes today.

1. 1962

   Maharashtra Act XXXII of 1962 amends the Bombay Municipal Corporation Act; Mumbai's licence notes are framed with reference to it. 3MCGM Schedule M

2. 27 November 1989

   The MSIHC Rules set isolated-storage thresholds for hazardous chemicals. 7MSIHC Rules 1989

3. 8 July 2003

   West Bengal's notification 279 lists markets, katras and fireworks shops among 19 high-risk occupancies. 11West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services

4. 5 April 2004

   West Bengal's Fire Licence Rules make the storage licence yearly. 9WB Licence Rules 2004

5. 29 December 2008

   The Explosives Rules, 2008 are notified (G.S.R. 907(E)), with Form LE-3 for fireworks store houses. 6PESO SOP

6. 17 December 2014

   Goa's section 13 notification lists godowns and warehouses, LPG godowns and hazardous storage. 15DFES Goa charter

7. 23 August 2018

   West Bengal prices the fire licence for LPG, petroleum and stored goods. 8WB notification 1338

8. 16 September 2018

   Bagree Market burns in Kolkata; over 400 shops destroyed, as reported. 31Scroll.innews report

9. February 2023

   The Bhagirath Palace inquiry report reaches Delhi's Lieutenant Governor, as reported. 30TOI via Asia Fire Newsnews report

10. 17 October 2023

    Karnataka orders a magisterial inquiry into the Attibele cracker godown fire, as reported. 32South Firstnews report

11. 1 April 2025

    A firecracker godown at Deesa, Gujarat, explodes; 21 killed, as reported. 28PTInews report

12. 30 April 2026

    NBC 2016 is withdrawn; NBCS 2026 carries the Annex B godown classes. 13Gazette of India

Market and godown fires and what officials did, 2018 to 2026

From news reports, not yet an official source.

Godown fire NOC myths, checked against the rules

• You may have read

  A small godown never needs fire clearance.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  Goa and Uttar Pradesh list storage at any size, Delhi catches hazardous premises above 100 m², and Mumbai's timber licence fee starts above 5 m². 15DFES Goa charter

• You may have read

  Grain godowns are low hazard.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  Only godowns of non-combustible goods are G1; general godowns are G2, and Annex B puts grain-crushing and rice mills in G2 too. 2BIS, SP 7:2026

• You may have read

  The trade licence covers fire safety.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  Mumbai's Licence Department consults the fire brigade before licensing, and Assam issues a trade licence only after the Fire Safety Certificate. 22Assam Rules 2025

• You may have read

  A licence for the shop covers the godown behind it.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  In Mumbai the licence covers only the premises it names; another godown or loft is unlicensed. 3MCGM Schedule M

• You may have read

  FCI fixes the same equipment for every godown.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  FCI scales extinguishers and buckets in 7 tonnage tiers and leaves type and placement to the local fire officer. 4FCI depot SOPs

• You may have read

  A fireworks shop licence covers the store house.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  A store house of up to 5,000 kg for one's own shops is a separate LE-3 licence from the Controller of Explosives. 1Explosives Rules 2008

Who licenses a godown: 6 offices named in the official texts

A godown can answer to the fire service, the city and PESO at once. These 6 offices are named in the instruments read on 25 October 2026.

• Licence Department, Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai 3MCGM Schedule M

  Section 394 licences for keeping a warehouse, timber, scrap, straw and fireworks, with the fire brigade's advice

• Central Licensing and Enforcement Cell, Municipal Corporation of Delhi 5NGT, MCD report

  General Trade/Storage Licence under section 417

  Address

  21st Floor, Dr SPM Civic Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, New Delhi 110002

• Collector of the district, West Bengal 9WB Licence Rules 2004

  Fire licence for premises storing inflammable or hazardous substances, under section 12

• District Commissioner, Assam 22Assam Rules 2025

  Trade licence for a godown, only after the Fire Safety Certificate

• Chief Controller or Controller of Explosives, PESO 6PESO SOP

  Form LE-3 for fireworks store houses of up to 5,000 kg

  Website

  peso.gov.in

• Local fire officer 4FCI depot SOPs

  Number, type and placement of fire equipment in FCI godowns

What Flamekite could not confirm about godown fire rules: 6 gaps

Six questions a godown owner asks that no official text we read on 25 October 2026 answers.