Devan Ramachandran, J.

1. This case presents issues that require great circumspection since it calls into attention the singular importance of interior stairs in high rise buildings especially in the event of evacuation in a fire incident. The operational significance of an interior staircase during fire fighting operations transcends mere code compliance and even their design. When fire erupts in a high rise building, the interior stairs become the primary means of egress of occupants and fire fighters alike.

2. Experience has shown that fire always takes the path of least resistance when spreading to uninvolved areas of the building and the internal stairs also sometimes become its unwitting travel partner. The prescriptions, therefore, relating to the staircases are vital and deserve full compliance.

3. In terms of fire safety, the exits on an escape route is considered as fire exits. These exits should, wherever practicable, be in the direction of escape, i.e., outwards to a place of safety outside the building. The time that it takes for the occupant population to reach safety when descending a stair during building evacuation is of climacteric importance and all prescriptive codes and regulations relating to fire safety treat these considerations to be the most portentous.

4. In these cases, I am called upon to consider the contentions relating to the specifications of the interior stairs and I am fully cognizant that any dilution in such specifications can be perilous from the angle of fire safety requirements. As I will presently state, my endeavour in this judgment is only to reconcile the various requirements, as are prescribed by the various provisions in the applicable Building Rules, and not to cause enervation in its terms in any manner.

5. I have heard Sri Babu S. Nair, the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Government Pleader for the official respondents. Since these Writ Petitions being dealt substantially with the same issues, I dispose of them jointly in this judgment.

6. The petitioners in these cases have constructed high rise buildings and are facing proceedings from the Fire and Rescue Department, as per which they have been refused approval for such construction from the angle of fire safety, under the various provisions of the applicable Statutes.

7. The relevant provisions, as are applicable, are all in the realm and domain of the Kerala Municipality Building Rules, 1999 ('the Rules' for brevity). Under Chapter XVII of the said Rules, a high rise building is defined as one having height of sixteen metres and above. It is admitted that all the buildings involved in these cases are high rise.

8. Under the provisions of R.111 of the Rules, every high rise building shall have two staircases as also a fire escape stairway. The provisions of the fire escape stairway is contained in R.114 of the Rules. The components of a building, including staircases are described and defined in Chapter VI of the Rules, whereof R.39 relates specifically to staircases.

9. Since I see that the entire controversy in these cases are hyptostised on the provisions relating to staircases, I think R.39 would require a full reading and I, therefore, extract it as under:

"Staircases. - (1) Any building having more than four floors including basement or sunken floors, shall have at least two staircases, one of which may be an external stairway:

Provided that when the second staircase provided as external stairway conforms to the provisions of fire escape staircase, a separate fire escape stair need not be provided.

Note:- An external stair is one which is connected to public areas and/or common areas on all floors and leads directly to ground, has at least two sides abutting external wall, these two sides being provided as open or with break open glass and has landing areas accessible from the external side or an external stair which is wholly open and removed from the main building, [such an external stair shall be re