Siliguri, April 25: A taskforce of the Bengal fire department has served notices on 80 buildings in town after it found their safety measures inadequate.

Twenty nursing homes, 18 mercantile buildings, 29 hotels and restaurants and 13 public halls and other establishments have been asked to initiate safety measures within 15 days. The measures include constructing underground and overhead reservoirs, alternative staircases and installing fire extinguishers in the buildings.

Udainarayan Adhikari, the divisional fire officer of Calcutta who heads the taskforce, said: “After serving the notice if we find that the owners are not responding, we will seal the buildings.”

Bengal fire minister Pratim Chatterjee had hinted that a taskforce was being formed when he came here earlier this month to inaugurate Siliguri’s second fire station at Matigara. The task force arrived here on April 20 and inspected the buildings on Sevoke Road, Burdwan Road, Station Feeder Road and Hill Cart Road for the next three days. The notices were served afterwards.

Adhikari, who had short-listed the 80 buildings, said many other establishments in town were not following safety norms either and would be served notice soon.

“Till date, 24 establishments who received the notice have collected forms from the department and declared that they would take the safety measures within the stipulated time,” Adhikari said. An inspector will visit the buildings 15 days later to take stock of the situation.

An FIR was lodged against Saubhagya Palace, a community hall on Sevoke Road that hosts fashion shows and other social functions, for non-cooperation and refusal to accept the notice yesterday.

Col (retd) Rakesh Bali, the proprietor of the community hall, claimed that he was unaware of any notice. “I don’t know who had come to survey and serve the notice,” he said.