Mumbai, August 22, 2026: The Fire and Security Association of India (FSAI), Hyderabad Chapter, with the support of the Council of EHS Professionals (CEP), organised ‘FESA 2026 (Fire, Electrical, Security and Automation) for Pharma’, bringing together industry leaders, EHS professionals, fire and security experts, technology providers and policymakers to address safety challenges in the pharmaceutical sector. With Telangana emerging as a major pharmaceutical and life-sciences hub, the seminar focused on fire prevention, process and electrical safety, emergency response and technology-enabled risk management.
The one-day seminar was inaugurated by the Chief Guest Sri G V Narayana Rao, Director, Telangana Fire Services, Govt. of Telangana. Guests of Honour Sri Y. Mohan Babu, Director of Factories, Department of Factories, Govt. of Telangana; Sri Sarvesh Singh, CEO, Telangana Life Sciences and Sri Tapas Saha, President, CEP; graced the occasion. Sri Manoj Wahi, President, FSAI Hyderabad Chapter and Sri Huzefa Hussain, Secretary, FSAI Hyderabad Chapter; were present on the occasion.
Pharma manufacturing involves flammable solvents, combustible powders, hazardous chemicals, high-temperature processes, reactors, dryers, pressure equipment and extensive electrical systems, creating complex fire and explosion risks. Solvents can generate flammable vapours, while APIs, excipients and intermediates can form combustible dust clouds during milling, granulation, drying, spray drying and material handling. Electrical faults, static electricity, hot work, equipment overheating, gas leaks and poor housekeeping can further escalate risks. An industry risk assessment found that electrical sources accounted for around 50% of pharmaceutical fire losses, highlighting the importance of preventive electrical maintenance.
Chief Guest Sri G V Narayana Rao, Director, Telangana Fire Services, Govt. of Telangana; said, Telangana’s pharmaceutical industry, given its global importance and hazardous nature, requires a zero-accident approach backed by strict regulatory compliance, process safety and advanced fire and life-safety infrastructure. With Telangana aspiring to become the vaccine capital and a global bulk-drug hub, government and industry must work together to strengthen safety standards and implement the National Building Code and other applicable regulations. The focus must shift from reactive firefighting to proactive fire prevention and risk mitigation. Key measures include rigorous process-safety audits, hazard and risk assessments, structural fire protection and integrated safety systems. Advanced technologies such as VESDA early smoke detection, multi-spectrum UV/IR flame detectors and thermal imaging cameras can identify electrical hotspots, chemical flames, overheating and reactor abnormalities before they escalate. These systems are particularly important in pharma facilities where high airflow, clean rooms, flammable solvents and complex processes can make conventional detection ineffective. Clean-agent fire suppression systems should be adopted in clean rooms and laboratories to protect sensitive equipment and prevent contamination and prolonged production shutdowns. Automated HVAC and fire-damper interlocks can further contain suppression agents and improve response effectiveness. Industry should integrate fire alarms with emergency solvent shut-off, power tripping and access-control systems, conduct regular process-safety audits, and ensure emergency teams are trained and equipped for round-the-clock response. He stressed that Fire NOCs be issued only after thorough inspections and verification of safety systems, with notices and legal action initiated against non-compliant industries. Regular awareness programmes and adoption of best practices are also being undertaken. He said, pharma safety must move from responding to fires to preventing them through technology, compliance, process control and close industry–fire department collaboration.
According to Sri Manoj Wahi, President, FSAI Hyderabad Chapter; FESA 2026 seeks to drive a shift from firefighting to fire prevention, compliance to continuous safety, and reactive response to predictive risk management. Pharma fire safety cannot begin with a fire alarm. It must begin with hazard identification at the design stage and continue throughout the life of the plant. The ultimate objective should be Zero Fire, rather than merely Zero Fatality, creating safer, more resilient and future-ready pharmaceutical facilities. It is my honour and privilege to welcome you to the third edition of FESA and the second focused on the pharma industry. The inaugural Pharma FESA in November 2024 was a resounding success. We appreciate the Council of EHS Professionals (CEP) for its support in organising FESA 2026 in the region’s oldest pharma cluster. The conference covers fire, static and electrical safety, security, automation, and gap assessment beyond regulatory compliance. Hyderabad’s key challenge is integrating fire, process, electrical, life, physical and cyber security into a continuously managed risk system. The Pashamylaram incident further highlights the need for independent, periodic, risk-based audits rather than one-time compliance inspections. Established in 2002, FSAI promotes life safety, security and a proactive safety culture through continuous awareness and stakeholder engagement.
Guest of Honour Sri Y. Mohan Babu, Director of Factories, Department of Factories, Govt. of Telangana; emphasised that fire safety begins with hazard identification. Industries must identify hazards arising during processing, maintenance, storage and handling of chemicals, communicate them to employees and neighboring communities, and train people on appropriate preventive and emergency measures. He outlined three key responsibilities, hazard identification and communication, onsite emergency planning, and safety audits. Fire preparedness is critical as fire incidents can rapidly spread beyond a single machine or section to the entire factory and surrounding areas. He cautioned that pharmaceutical manufacturing requires special vigilance because closed, controlled environments can allow combustible dust or flammable vapours to accumulate, increasing the risk of fire or dust explosions. Industries must therefore address hazards such as static discharge and short circuits and maintain appropriate firefighting systems and safeguards. While acknowledging significant improvements in pharma safety over the past decades, he stressed that safety is not merely a statutory requirement but a moral responsibility and essential for business continuity. He urged industries to identify hazards proactively, implement preventive measures, and remain prepared through robust emergency plans and firefighting capabilities.
Guest of Honour Sri Sarvesh Singh, CEO, Telangana Life Sciences, thanked FSAI for creating a dedicated forum on fire and safety, noting that many companies still view it primarily as a regulatory compliance issue rather than a strategic priority. He highlighted Telangana’s position as a global life-sciences hub, producing 40% of India’s exported APIs and generics, nearly one-third of the world’s vaccines, and hosting a large concentration of life-sciences GCCs and FDA-approved manufacturing facilities. This scale, he said, brings a greater responsibility to raise safety standards. He urged the industry to move beyond conventional fire drills, CCTV and access controls towards proactive, technology-driven safety, using AI, deep tech and predictive analytics to identify risks before incidents occur. He also called for a broader definition of safety covering physical, digital, chemical, biological and infrastructure security, with updated safety norms reflecting the evolving risks of the pharmaceutical and life-sciences sector. FSAI, he suggested, can play a key role by bringing industry and technology providers together to drive this shift from reactive compliance to predictive and comprehensive safety management.
Guest of Honour Sri Tapas Saha, President, CEP (Council of EHS Professionals); said, appreciate FSAI for highlighting Hyderabad’s pharmaceutical industry, a major contributor to revenue and global healthcare. While pharma companies manufacture life-saving drugs, they also handle highly hazardous chemicals, making safety a critical responsibility. With 35 years in the sector, I have seen significant progress, but risks remain. Risk cannot be eliminated, but it can be controlled through robust processes, protection systems and continuous monitoring. Fire-safety systems must not merely exist; their functionality must be verified in real time. Automation can monitor water levels, pressure, pumps and other critical parameters, ensuring systems are operational during emergencies. As Telangana moves towards a $1-trillion economy and pharma, biotechnology and biosimilars expand rapidly, safety must grow alongside investment. The industry must protect people, property and the environment while sustaining growth. I urge pharma professionals to support FSAI in advancing safety automation and building a safer, more resilient pharmaceutical ecosystem.
The challenge is particularly significant in Telangana. Telangana Fire Services data indicates that 102 major fire incidents occurred in pharmaceutical units over approximately a decade, causing property losses exceeding ₹100 crore. The actual economic impact is considerably higher when production losses, business interruption, material damage, contamination, compensation, reconstruction and supply-chain disruptions are considered.
The Sigachi Industries incident at Pashamylaram, Sangareddy, which happened last year, underscored the risks associated with combustible dust and process safety. The dust explosion in the spray-drying section claimed 46 lives and injured 25 people, according to company disclosures, while the company estimated a ₹60 crore revenue impact from the plant shutdown. The incident reinforced the need to move beyond conventional fire protection towards process safety, explosion prevention, early detection and predictive risk management.
FESA 2026; advocates a six-pillar approach of Prevent hazards; Detect early; Suppress effectively; Contain fire and explosions; Respond through trained teams and drills; and recover through business continuity and disaster recovery. As Telangana strengthens its position as a global pharmaceutical hub, fire and process safety has implications for lives, production continuity, supply chains, regulatory standing and customer confidence, says Sri Huzefa Hussain.
While pharma companies operate under multiple statutory and regulatory frameworks, comprehensive public data on overall fire and process-safety compliance remains unavailable. The priority is therefore to move beyond approvals and fire certificates towards continuous compliance, monitoring and operational readiness. The Telangana Directorate of Factories’ 2026 safety circular on chemical and pharma industries handling combustible dust and hazardous processes further underlines this priority.
FESA 2026 showcased solutions that enable pharma companies to transition from reactive firefighting to proactive and predictive safety, including advanced fire and gas detection, AI-based video analytics, thermal imaging, automatic sprinkler, foam, water-mist and clean-agent systems, explosion detection and suppression, spark detection, electrical thermography, predictive maintenance, IoT-based monitoring, emergency shutdown and process interlock systems, digital command centres and automated emergency response.
Industry experts stressed that fire safety cannot begin with a fire alarm; it must begin with hazard identification at the design stage and continue throughout the life of the facility. Before commissioning, companies should undertake HAZOP, HIRA, process hazard analysis, combustible-dust assessment, hazardous-area classification, fire-load and chemical compatibility studies, explosion-protection design and emergency planning. During operations, regular inspections, system testing, electrical thermography, gas-detector calibration, emergency drills and independent audits are essential.
Corporate Comm India (CCI Newswire)
