Telangana high court seeks timeline for law governing safety of lifts amid rising accidents

Hyderabad: Telangana high court on Wednesday asked the state govt to clarify how much time it would require to enact a law governing the safety of lifts and elevators across the state, amid concerns over repeated fatal accidents.Hearing a public interest litigation initiated on the basis of a letter and a petition filed by advocate Barkat Ali Khan, a bench comprising Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice GM Mohiuddin noted that several deaths due to lift accidents had been reported since the PIL was admitted in 2025. State counsel informed the court that a draft bill had already been submitted to the govt and was under active consideration, seeking six months' time to enact the legislation. However, the bench directed the state to file a detailed report within four weeks on the status of the revised Telangana Lifts Act, 2025, and the stage at which it was pending. Expressing reservations over the timeline, the bench observed that the state assembly meets once every two to three months. The matter was posted for further hearing after four weeks. During the proceedings, Ali Khan, appearing in person, told the court that he had visited victims' families and industrial establishments and found multiple lapses in lift safety measures. He also submitted that, in compliance with the court's earlier directions, he had prepared a draft containing proposed safety guidelines and submitted it in Jan. Recording his submissions, the bench directed the authorities to examine whether the proposed guidelines could be implemented through executive instructions until the revised Telangana Lifts Act comes into force. The case was then adjourned.