Fire NOC for a shopping mall: state lines, systems, audits and steps

Fire NOC for a mall at a glance: 10 facts

Mall fire NOC lines in 23 states and UTs, from the instruments

How to get a fire NOC for a mall: 9 steps

1. 1

   Settle the class: F-2, F-3 or D-6

   A shops-only centre is F-2 (F-1 up to 500 m²) and an underground one F-3. Add a cinema, multiplex or food court and NBC 2016 calls the whole building D-6, an assembly building.

2. 2

   Measure the building the state's way

   Delhi counts mezzanine and stilt floors as storeys, Haryana, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh test 500 m² on any one floor, and Kerala adds up all floors against 1,000 m².

3. 3

   Keep the mall within 30 m and plan the D-6 plant

   NBC 2016 bars Group D and F above 30 m. A D-6 mall needs a wet riser, yard hydrant, sprinklers, detection, a 2,00,000 litre underground tank and 2,850 litre a minute pumps.

4. 4

   Design exits and smoke control before sanction

   Separate cinema exits, 2.0 m exit passageways, a 30 m common path, dead ends of 6 m at most, a refuge floor at 18 m, and smoke exhaust at 12 air changes an hour.

5. 5

   Take the plan-stage NOC with the building permit

   Maharashtra issues Provisional approval on the plans; Gujarat's Fire Safety Plan Approval comes before development permission; Karnataka wants its NOC before construction at 21 m.

6. 6

   Install, test and keep the installer's certificates

   In Maharashtra a licensed agency signs Form A at occupation. Keep every test report: the DGFS checklist asks for them at items 23, 66 and 94.

7. 7

   Apply for the final certificate before the mall opens

   Upload the plans, ownership papers, completion documents and a floor-by-floor list of uses, as the DGFS checklist's section 2 asks, then face the inspection.

8. 8

   Appoint the Fire Officer and run the drills

   A qualified Fire Officer with 3 years' experience on the premises, a Fire Command Centre, and fire drills every 3 months for the first 2 years, then every 6 months.

9. 9

   Diary the renewal and the half-yearly filings

   Form B in Maharashtra, Form A-8 in UP and the third-party certificate in Telangana all fall in January and July. The renewal date calculator works out your last day.

Where a mall sits in the fire codes: F-2, F-3 and D-6

A shops-only centre is mercantile; add a cinema, multiplex or food court and the codes call it D-6, an assembly building. The class moves the systems and, in several states, the NOC line.

FF-1 and F-2, NBC 2016

Shops, stores, departmental stores and markets with a covered area up to 500 m² (F-1) or over 500 m² (F-2), incidental storage included. 8BIS, NBC 2016 Part 4

FF-3, NBC 2016

Underground shopping centres. Table 7 gives them one row at every size, with sprinklers and a 1,50,000 litre underground tank. Shops-only buildings have their own page on commercial buildings. 1NBC 2016, Table 7

DD-6, NBC 2016

Mixed assembly and mercantile: shopping malls that offer shopping, cinema theatres, multiplexes and restaurants or food courts. Clause 6.4.2.2 adds life safety rules for it alone. 8BIS, NBC 2016 Part 4

MMixed occupancy, clause 3.1.11

Where uses are intermingled, the most restrictive fire provisions govern the whole building, and occupancies are separated by 240-minute construction. 8BIS, NBC 2016 Part 4

GGroup D, F-I and F-II, NBCS 2026

The 2026 standard lists shopping malls first among its assembly examples and keeps F-I shops and F-II underground shopping centres, without the 500 m² split. It is voluntary. 9BIS, SP 7:2026

CC3 and C4, Jammu and Kashmir

Shopping malls are C3 and multiplexes C4 in the bye-laws' use classes; both are in the fire NOC list. 18J&K Gazette

GGroup J, Kerala

A multiplex complex is its own group under the Kerala building rules, and needs the fire NOC at any size (assembly (D) needs it over 200 m² at any height). 19KMBR amendment 2025

CCommercial building, Maharashtra fee schedule

Schedule II names hotels, eateries, malls, multiplexes, theatres and shops as commercial, which pays 0.75% of the Annual Statement of Rates a square metre up to 45 m. 6MH Act 2023 Schedule II

Mall fire systems by height: NBC 2016 Table 7 against Maharashtra

Table 7 asks far less of a low shopping building than of a mall with a cinema: a D-6 mall needs sprinklers, a yard hydrant and the largest pumps at any height. Both tables were read off their page images.

Every row also asks for extinguishers and first-aid hose reels. Each pump set carries a 180 litre a minute jockey pump (two in the larger sets), and NBC Note 22 asks one set per 100 hydrants, up to 2 sets. The one real difference: Maharashtra drops the yard hydrant between 15 m and 24 m. The 2026 standard (NBCS) uses protection levels instead: shops up to 500 m² and 15 m may be self-certified by a State-approved professional, and an underground shopping complex adds public address and voice evacuation. It is voluntary.

Mall exits, food courts, multiplexes and car parks: 7 dos and 6 don'ts

NBC 2016 clause 6.4.2.2 sets life safety rules for D-6 malls only, read off the page image; the DGFS checklist and the 2026 standard add the rest. Each line names its clause.

Mall smoke control in numbers: atrium, basement and exhaust fans

Smoke, more than flame, blocks a mall's exits. These are the figures the 2026 standard and the DGFS checklist set for smoke exhaust; NBC 2016's own smoke clauses were not proof-read for this page.

• 8 air changes an hour

  Atrium smoke extraction, planned for 15 m from the top (DGFS item 24) 7DGFS mall checklist

• 12 air changes an hour

  Basement mechanical ventilation in a fire (NBCS 2026, 4.6.2; DGFS item 41) 9BIS, SP 7:2026

• 250 °C

  For 120 minutes: the rating of smoke exhaust fans (NBCS 4.6.1; DGFS item 25) 9BIS, SP 7:2026

• 2.5 %

  Of floor area: minimum vents for a naturally ventilated basement (NBCS 4.6.2; DGFS item 40) 9BIS, SP 7:2026

• 25 Pa

  Minimum pressure difference for a pressurised exit, 25 to 30 Pa (NBCS 4.6.1) 9BIS, SP 7:2026

• 100 %

  Longer travel distance allowed in a sprinklered mall atrium with a ceiling of 10 m or more (NBCS Table 4, Note 5) 9BIS, SP 7:2026

• 750 m²

  Largest unsprinklered compartment on a mercantile floor; not essential once sprinklered (NBCS Table 6) 9BIS, SP 7:2026

What the DGFS mall checklist inspects: 12 of its 100 inspection points

The checklist numbers 100 inspection points, from occupancy class to mock drills, counted on its page images. These 12 are the ones written for malls in particular. It is advisory.

How the DGFS classes a mall: assembly, subdivision D-6

The Directorate General of Fire Services issued a checklist for malls in 2025. Its first page settles the class, read from the page image.

Its last page calls the document an advisory: a general guideline that State and UT fire services may use alongside their existing practice. Section 3 runs to 100 numbered points over 17 pages, each with an NBC clause or Indian Standard and a Yes, No or Remarks column. Two points differ from the codes: item 92 puts a high-rise mall's refuge area at 24 m where NBC 2016 clause 6.4.2.2(j) says 18 m, and item 27 asks 60-minute kitchen compartments where the 2026 standard asks 120 minutes for cooking in food courts.

Does your mall need a fire NOC? 11 cases

Find the first line that fits your building. Crossing any one test in your state is enough, and a cinema or food court can move a mall into the assembly line.

1. If Delhi, a mall with a cinema, multiplex or food court

   Yes at any height if DFS classes it as assembly: Rule 27 lists every assembly building. A shops-only mall comes in over 9 m or at 3 storeys. Fire NOC Delhi 15DFS

2. If Gujarat, any shopping mall

   Yes, every one, under the Third Schedule of the 2023 Regulations, whatever its size or height. Fire NOC Gujarat 16Gujarat Fire Safety Compliance Portal

3. If Uttar Pradesh, any mall

   Yes: section 26(3)(ii) names every mercantile and assembly building without a size line. Fire NOC UP 20UP Act 16 of 2022

4. If Tamil Nadu, any mall

   Yes: DTCP asks for a Fire Service NOC for malls at any height; above 18.3 m the Director issues it. Fire NOC Tamil Nadu 21TNSWP

5. If Kerala, a mall with a multiplex

   Yes: multiplex complexes (J) have no size line, and assembly (D) is caught over 200 m² at any height. A shops-only mall needs it over 1,000 m² or 15 m. Fire NOC Kerala 19KMBR amendment 2025

6. If Rajasthan, 9 m or over 500 m² on a floor

   Yes, under Table 1 of the 2023 order, with a yearly fee; a food court for 50 persons is an assembly line of its own. Fire NOC Rajasthan 22Rajasthan UDH

7. If Haryana or Bihar, a floor over 500 m²

   Yes, at any height; both also cover every assembly building. Fire NOC Haryana 23Government of Haryana

8. If Odisha or Chhattisgarh, 9 m or 500 m²

   Yes. In Chhattisgarh a mall with a cinema is an assembly building: high risk, with a 1-year certificate. Fire NOC Chhattisgarh 24Fire and Emergency Services and SDRF, Chhattisgarh

9. If Karnataka, 21 m or more

   Yes, before construction, whatever the use. Between 15 m and 21 m ask KSFES in writing, since Seva Sindhu lists buildings above 15 m. Fire NOC Karnataka 25Government of Karnataka

10. If Telangana, any mall or multiplex holding a NOC

    A third-party fire audit certificate every January and July, the six-monthly tier, at any height. Fire Audit Telangana 12TG fire circular 2020

11. If Below every line in your state

    No certificate, but the code's minimum stays: even a ground plus one shop building up to 500 m² needs extinguishers, hose reels, a 5,000 litre terrace tank and a 450 litre a minute pump. Do I need a fire NOC? 1NBC 2016, Table 7

Who holds the fire NOC in a mall: owner, management or tenant

The fire Acts put the duty on the owner or occupier of the building, so the common systems sit with whoever runs the mall. Tenants meet their own trade-licence fire conditions. These 7 instruments say who files what.

• Maharashtra, 2026

  One agency for the whole building

  MFS's Form B guidelines note the confusion of Form B filed floor-wise or shop-wise where a building has various occupiers, and require one agency for the entire building's water-based systems, detection and alarm, and passive measures. 13MFS Form B guidelines

• Maharashtra, section 3(3)

  The owner or occupier certifies

  The January and July certificate is furnished by the owner or occupier, as the case may be, to the Chief Fire Officer or the Director. 26MFS Act 2006 copy

• Mumbai, 2016

  A restaurant tenant's own fire NOC

  MCGM's eating-house licence is issued on health grounds only; the applicant must obtain the fire safety NOC separately from the Chief Fire Officer. 14MCGM circular 2016

• Gujarat, rule 26(2)

  Owner or occupier with the Fire Safety Officer

  Form B-15, every 6 months, is declared by the owner or occupier and the Fire Safety Officer together. 16Gujarat Fire Safety Compliance Portal

• Uttar Pradesh, Rule 56

  The owner files Form A-8

  The owner files a Form A-8 declaration every January and July, with the qualified agency certifying the systems. 27UP Rules 2024

• DGFS checklist

  One Fire Officer and one command centre

  Items 90, 96 and 97 ask for a designated fire safety area-in-charge, a Fire Command Centre and a qualified Fire Officer on the premises: duties of whoever runs the building. 7DGFS mall checklist

• Chhattisgarh, rule 35

  No cinema or multiplex licence without the building's certificate

  No authority may issue or renew a licence for a cinema or multiplex without working fire systems and a valid certificate, so a multiplex operator in a mall depends on the mall's certificate being current. 28CG Gazette

How often a mall renews or files: from twice a year to valid until cancelled

Malls file more often than most buildings. Each stop is one state's rule for malls, mercantile or assembly buildings.

Mall fire NOC fees in 13 official schedules

Malls pay by built-up area in most states that publish a rate, and Maharashtra ties the fee to land rates. Each line is from an official schedule; where nothing is charged, the line says so.

What a mall risks without a valid fire certificate: 9 penalties

Penalties come from the fire Acts and rules; cinema and trade licences carry their own. Each line names the law that sets it.

Every state's penalty ladder is on the fire NOC penalties page.

Mall fire NOC worked cases: 9 buildings

Each case applies one instrument to a described mall. They are Flamekite's worked examples, not decisions of any fire service.

1. Case 1

   A shops-only centre in Lajpat Nagar, Delhi, 14 m

   Ground plus 3, F-2, no cinema or food court.

   What applies Over 9 m and 4 storeys, so a DFS certificate. Below 15 m with more than ground plus one, Table 7 asks a down-comer, a manual alarm and a 25,000 litre terrace tank with a 900 litre a minute pump. 15DFS

2. Case 2

   The same Delhi building with a 3-screen multiplex added

   Now mixed assembly and mercantile, D-6.

   What applies Table 7's D-6 row applies at any height: wet riser, yard hydrant, sprinklers, detection, a 2,00,000 litre underground tank and 2,850 litre a minute pumps. 3BIS, NBC 2016 Part 4

3. Case 3

   A 22 m shopping centre in Pune

   Shops only, F-2, no cinema.

   What applies Maharashtra's 15 to 24 m row: wet riser, sprinklers, manual and automatic alarm, a 1,00,000 litre underground tank and a 2,280 litre a minute set, but no yard hydrant, which NBC 2016 would ask. 2MH Schedule-I 2023

4. Case 4

   A 35 m mall and office tower in Mumbai

   Mall podium below, offices above.

   What applies Mercantile or mixed above 30 m makes it a section 45 building: a fire officer or supervisor, and a Fire and Life Safety Audit every 2 years on top of Form B. 17Amendment Act 2023

5. Case 5

   A Mumbai mall with a separate maintenance contractor per wing

   Several occupiers, one building.

   What applies MFS's 2026 guidelines want one agency for the whole building's water-based, alarm and passive systems, and one Form B each January and July. 13MFS Form B guidelines

6. Case 6

   A mall in Hyderabad with a 4-screen multiplex

   Holds an occupancy NOC.

   What applies On Telangana's six-monthly list: a third-party fire audit certificate every January and July. 12TG fire circular 2020

7. Case 7

   A 12,000 m² mall in Ahmedabad

   Ground plus 4.

   What applies Every shopping mall is in Gujarat's Third Schedule. At Rs 25 per m² the certificate fee is Rs 3,00,000, plus Rs 5,000 for plan approval. 16Gujarat Fire Safety Compliance Portal

8. Case 8

   A 25 m mall in Bengaluru, 20,000 m² built-up

   Shops, food court and parking.

   What applies At 21 m or more the KSFES NOC is compulsory before construction; at Rs 60 per m² the fee is Rs 12,00,000, above the Rs 5,00,000 floor. 34Seva Sindhu

9. Case 9

   A 2-storey mall in Jaipur, 900 m² a floor

   Nagar Nigam area, 1,800 m² gross, about 19,375 sq ft.

   What applies Over 500 m² on a floor, so covered. At Rs 2 per sq ft the fee is about Rs 38,750, renewed generally every year. 22Rajasthan UDH

Where malls fail a fire inspection, and the fix: 7 cases

These are the failures the instruments and the post-fire orders point to for malls.

Mall fire NOC myths, checked against the rules

5 claims repeated online, and what the instruments say.

• You may have read

  A mall is a mercantile (F) building.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  Only if it sells and nothing more. With cinemas, multiplexes or food courts NBC 2016 puts it in D-6, an assembly subdivision, and the DGFS checklist starts from that class. 8BIS, NBC 2016 Part 4

• You may have read

  A mall needs sprinklers only above 15 m.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  That is the shops-only rule, where below 15 m only a basement over 200 m² is sprinklered. A D-6 mall needs sprinklers at any height. 3BIS, NBC 2016 Part 4

• You may have read

  Once the mall has its NOC, tenants need nothing.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  In Mumbai a restaurant's eating-house licence asks the tenant for its own fire NOC from the Chief Fire Officer. 14MCGM circular 2016

• You may have read

  The DGFS mall checklist is binding law.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  It is an advisory: State and UT fire services may keep their existing practice and use it as input. 7DGFS mall checklist

• You may have read

  A mall can rise as high as the plot allows.

  Myth

  What the sources say

  NBC 2016 Note 16 bars Group D and F buildings above 30 m, and Maharashtra's Schedule-I Note 3(b) says the same. 1NBC 2016, Table 7

Mall fire rules and orders, dated: 2012 to 2026

The instruments that set or changed a mall's fire duties, in order.

1. 25 June 2012

   Maharashtra's Urban Development Department tells malls and other crowded private buildings to get licensed agencies' audits each January and July. 48UDD circular 130

2. 5 March 2016

   Telangana sets a 15 m NOC line for mercantile buildings, with yearly random inspection. 49TSDRFS circular 2016

3. 28 January 2020

   Telangana puts malls and multiplexes on the January and July audit tier. 12TG fire circular 2020

4. 12 April 2021

   MFS order 417 cites the Dreams Mall fire among the fires that killed patients. 47MFS order 417

5. 29 November 2022

   Chhattisgarh lists every assembly building, and mercantile above 9 m or 500 m². 50Home Department, Chhattisgarh

6. 30 May 2023

   Maharashtra's 2023 Amendment Act, with the new Schedule-I and the Schedule II fees, comes into force. 51UDD notification 2023

7. 14 September 2023

   Rajasthan's UDH order covers mercantile buildings at 9 m or 500 m² on a floor. 22Rajasthan UDH

8. 18 January 2024

   UP's Rules give assembly buildings 1 year and mercantile 3. 27UP Rules 2024

9. 31 January 2025

   MFS ends renewal of fire approvals; Form B carries on twice a year. 29MFS circular 64

10. 16 October 2025

    Chhattisgarh makes assembly buildings high risk with 1-year certificates. 24Fire and Emergency Services and SDRF, Chhattisgarh

11. 9 December 2025

    West Bengal names malls among the vulnerable buildings its expert committees handle. 52WB F&ES order 1591

12. 30 April 2026

    NBC 2016 is withdrawn; NBCS 2026 brings the mall-like occupancy clause and the 30 m preference. 10Gazette of India

13. 26 May 2026

    Delhi's substituted Rule 27 keeps every assembly building and mercantile over 9 m. 15DFS

14. 7 July 2026

    MFS's Form B guidelines ask one agency for the whole building. 13MFS Form B guidelines

Mall fires and the checks after them: Kochi 2017 to Mumbai 2026

From news reports, not yet an official source.

Where a mall applies or files: 7 official fire portals

Apply on the fire service's own portal or single window. These 7 are linked from official pages Flamekite read.

• Delhi

  Delhi Fire Service

  Links the Fire Safety Certificate application and renewal portal. 53DFS

  dfs.delhi.gov.in ↗

• Uttar Pradesh

  UP Fire and Emergency Services

  The online fire NOC dashboard; it lists the service and its fee as nil. 43UP Fire dashboard

  upfireservice.gov.in/upfire/dashboard_brap ↗

• Gujarat

  GujFireSafety CoP

  The Acts, Regulations and links to the citizen and Fire Safety Officer services. 54Directorate of Gujarat State Fire Prevention Services

  gujfiresafetycop.in ↗

• Gujarat, verify

  Valid Certificate

  Search a building's certificate by region, application type and building name before you lease a shop. 55Gujarat Valid Certificate

  gujfiresafetycop.in/ValidCertificate.aspx ↗

• Telangana

  TGFD Fire Audit module

  Where the January and July third-party certificate is uploaded. 56TGFD Fire Audit

  fire.telangana.gov.in/FireAudit/FireAuditLogin.aspx ↗

• Karnataka

  Seva Sindhu high-rise NOC

  The KSFES NOC for buildings above 15 m, with the fee and the 60 working-day service time. 34Seva Sindhu

  sevasindhu.karnataka.gov.in/category/Application%20for%20No%20Objection%20Certificate%20(High%20rise%20Building)%20-%20Fire%20&%20Emergency.html ↗

• Kerala

  Kerala Fire and Rescue NOC portal

  Online NOC applications, for multiplexes and assembly buildings at any size. 57Kerala Fire and Rescue

  noc.fire.kerala.gov.in ↗

What Flamekite could not confirm about mall fire NOCs

These 7 points are where a reader would expect an answer and no official source gave one on 25 October 2026.