NBC Standards For Hospitals: What Changed With NBCS 2026

Hospitals house people who cannot easily escape a fire and run on oxygen and electricity around the clock, so NBC standards for hospitals, the building and fire safety norms published by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), matter to every administrator, architect and engineer. On 30 April 2026, BIS withdrew the National Building Code of India 2016 (SP 7:2016) and replaced it with the National Building Construction Standards 2026 (SP 7:2026, or "NBCS 2026"). Many state fire rules and approvals still cite NBC 2016, so this guide explains what changed, which edition applies, and the hospital requirements that hold under both.

What Are NBC Standards, And What Is NBCS 2026?

The National Building Code of India was BIS's model code for planning, designing and constructing buildings, covering structural design, fire and life safety, building services and plumbing. Its last edition, NBC 2016, had fire and life safety in Part 4.

NBCS 2026 is the next revision of the same document, renamed; the BIS standards portal lists SP 7:2026 as superseding SP 7:2016. The parts are now lettered: Part C covers structural design, Part D building services (including electrical installations, air conditioning and lifts), Part E plumbing services and Part F fire and life safety, whose foreword traces it back to Part 4 of the 1970 code.

It is a model document. Part F states that fire services are a state subject and that it is "only for guidance and referral" for state governments and local authorities, so NBCS 2026 binds a hospital only where state fire laws, bye-laws or development control regulations adopt it, as was always true of NBC 2016. Its fire text also uses "should" rather than "shall" and is described as performance-oriented, giving states more room to set their own requirements.

NBC 2016 Or NBCS 2026: Which Applies To Your Hospital?

The edition that applies is the one your state fire rules, bye-laws and approving authorities use, and many still name NBC 2016 or simply "the National Building Code". For example:

• The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's National Guidelines on Fire and Life Safety in Healthcare Facilities (2026), launched in May 2026, are aligned with NBC 2016 Part 4. They advise facilities to also consider later versions of the code and any BIS guidance for healthcare facilities.
• NABH's March 2025 notice on fire safety certificates for hospitals in Delhi asks for third-party fire safety audits that comply with NBC Part IV 2016.

In practice, existing hospitals continue to be inspected and renewed against their state's current rules, often NBC 2016 Part 4. New hospitals and major renovations should be designed with NBCS 2026 in mind, since state rules are likely to move to it, while meeting what the local authority enforces today. A stricter state or local requirement always applies.

Why Are Building Standards So Important For Hospitals?

• Patient safety: many patients cannot move without help, so the building must support evacuation and everyday patient safety measures.
• Fire risk: hospitals combine sleeping occupants, medical gases and heavy electrical loads. MoHFW's 2026 guidelines note that studies consistently identify electrical faults, especially short circuits and malfunctioning air conditioners or medical equipment, as the main cause of hospital fires in India.
• Accessibility and resilience: people with disabilities must be able to enter, move around and escape, and the building must stay usable after earthquakes and storms, when it is needed most.
• Hygiene: plumbing, ventilation and finishes affect how easily infections spread, so building design supports infection control.

What Are The Key NBC Standards Relevant To Hospitals?

These areas apply under both editions. Figures are quoted from Part F of NBCS 2026; your state's rules may set different values, so confirm them with your fire authority.

1. Occupancy Classification

Both editions classify hospitals as Group C, Institutional buildings (clause 3.1.4). Subdivision C-1, hospitals and sanatoria, covers hospitals, infirmaries, sanatoria and nursing homes that house people who may be incapable of self-preservation. Custodial institutions (C-2) and penal and mental institutions (C-3) are separate subdivisions.

Under NBCS 2026, the Part F provisions apply to institutional buildings taller than 15 m or with more than 500 m2 on any floor, and a "high rise building" is now one of 24 m or more. MoHFW's guidelines, based on NBC 2016, treat hospitals above 15 m as high-rise, so check which threshold your state uses.

2. Exits And Egress

Hospital exits are sized for patients on beds and stretchers. Both editions require exits from hospital sections to be at least 2 m wide; the code's foreword records that this width was raised from 1.5 m in 2005. Among the NBCS 2026 recommendations for hospitals (clause 6.3.2):

• Corridors, aisles and ramps used to move patients should be at least 2.4 m wide, and 1.5 m in other areas.
• Doors should be at least 1.25 m wide for single or double patient rooms, 1.5 m for wards of 3 to 5 beds, and 2 m for larger wards and areas where patients are evacuated on beds, such as ICUs and recovery units.
• Dead-end corridors should not exceed 6 m, and the common path of travel should be up to 30 m.
• Staircases in institutional buildings should be 2 m wide.

3. Compartmentation And Progressive Horizontal Evacuation

Because many patients cannot use stairs, hospitals rely on progressive horizontal evacuation into an adjoining fire compartment on the same floor, a concept NBC 2016 detailed and NBCS 2026 keeps. Under NBCS 2026:

• Floors in hospitals and nursing homes with sleeping patients should be divided into fire compartments of up to 750 m2, or 2,000 m2 if sprinklered (Table 6).
• Each compartment should be able to hold the patients from the adjoining compartment as well as its own, allowing 3.5 m2 per bed-ridden patient.
• Operation theatres, delivery rooms, ICUs and recovery rooms should be separated from adjoining areas with at least 120-minute fire and smoke separation.
• Critical patients and those who cannot evacuate themselves should preferably be housed within 45 m of height. Taller hospitals need additional measures agreed with the local fire authority, such as refuge terraces with medical gas supply on alternate floors.
• Basements should not hold flammable stores or laboratories that use flammable chemicals.

4. Fire Detection And Suppression

For hospitals up to 45 m tall, Table 7C of NBCS 2026 recommends fire extinguishers, first-aid hose reels, wet risers, yard hydrants, automatic sprinklers and automatic fire detection and alarm once a hospital exceeds 500 m2, with a public address and voice evacuation system above 1,000 m2. Only hospitals of up to 500 m2 and 24 m may rely on self-certification by a state-approved building professional. The table's notes also call for sprinklers in areas storing oxygen or other medical gases, laundry and linen, waste, and transformer rooms inside the building footprint or basement.

In institutional buildings, detectors should also be placed in electrical shafts and lift machine rooms, and voice evacuation messages should be in English, Hindi and the local language.

5. Electrical Systems And Emergency Power

NBCS 2026 recommends that fire pumps, fire alarms, emergency lighting, exit signs, firefighter lifts, smoke control and voice evacuation run on normal and standby generator power with a changeover facility. Substations and LT panel rooms should be at ground or first basement level with 120-minute fire-resistant walls and doors, and critical utility rooms such as electrical, UPS, battery and server rooms should be enclosed in 2-hour fire-rated construction.

Detailed electrical design is in Part D, Section 2 of NBCS 2026 (Part 8 of NBC 2016) and the National Electrical Code of India. MoHFW's guidelines make an electrical safety audit, following the National Electrical Code (SP 30), an integral part of a hospital's fire safety audit.

6. HVAC And Smoke Control

Ducts can carry smoke between floors, so NBCS 2026 recommends a separate air handling unit for each floor, and preferably for each compartment, with fire or smoke dampers where ducts cross fire walls and floors, linked to the fire alarm panel. Air filters and duct insulation should be non-combustible, and AHU rooms should not be used for storage. Ventilation rates for different rooms are in the building services part.

7. Accessibility

Accessible entrances, ramps, lifts, toilets and escape routes are also an obligation for public buildings under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. NBCS 2026 points to IS 4963:2025, the BIS standard on accessibility for older adults and persons with disabilities, for safe egress, and suggests visual strobes so people with hearing impairment are also alerted to a fire. In hospitals, a stretcher lift in a lift bank should also serve as the firefighters' lift.

What Should Hospitals Do Now?

• Check which edition applies: read your state fire rules, building bye-laws and fire NOC conditions to see which edition they cite.
• Keep existing compliance current: do not let NOC renewals, audits or system maintenance lapse during the transition.
• Design new builds to NBCS 2026: brief your architect and fire consultant to meet NBCS 2026 as well as current local rules, and consult the fire authority early.
• Compare old and new: ask your fire consultant where NBCS 2026 differs from your building's design basis, such as compartment sizes, the high-rise threshold and firefighting installations.
• Watch for updates from your state fire service, urban development department, NABH and MoHFW.

How Are NBC Standards Implemented In Hospitals?

1. Planning: confirm the applicable edition, occupancy classification, and height and area limits.
2. Design: plan compartments, exits, patient routes and accessibility from the start, with qualified fire protection engineers involved, as Part F of NBCS 2026 advises.
3. Construction: build to approved plans, with inspections of fire-rated construction, fire stopping and services.
4. Approval: test fire systems and obtain the fire NOC and other approvals before occupation.
5. Ongoing compliance: maintain systems, renew certificates and carry out required audits and drills.

What Are The Challenges in Adhering to NBC Standards?

• Cost: fire-rated construction, compartmentation and fire protection raise initial costs, though they avoid costlier retrofits later.
• Complexity: the code is technical and the rules vary by state, so most hospitals need specialist fire and building consultants.
• Two editions: for a while, current approvals may reference NBC 2016 while new projects follow NBCS 2026.
• Older buildings: wider corridors or new compartments are hard to add, so improvements often need careful phasing.

What Is The Role Of Technology In Ensuring Compliance With NBC Standards?

• Building Information Modelling (BIM): 3D models help check exits, compartments and services coordination during design.
• Building management and fire alarm systems: NBCS 2026 recommends monitoring several systems, such as fire pumps, water tanks and sprinkler pressures, from the fire alarm panel.
• Digital compliance records: audits, maintenance, drills and certificates kept in one place are easier to show inspectors and assessors.

Fire Safety Measures For Hospitals: MoHFW Guidelines And The NABH Advisory

Keeping a hospital fire-safe once it is running is an operational task, covered by two key documents.

MoHFW's National Guidelines on Fire and Life Safety in Healthcare Facilities (2026) are advisory, for states to adapt and adopt. They recommend:

• A Fire Safety Committee and a Fire Safety Officer in every healthcare facility, with a qualified officer of three years' experience for high-rise hospitals, and suggested for facilities of 250 beds and above.
• Fire hazard assessments every quarter or after major changes, recorded in a fire hazard register.
• A full fire safety audit at least once a year or as per state norms, including an electrical safety audit, with independent third-party audits recommended.
• A fire safety plan within the disaster management plan, covering evacuation of ICUs, NICUs, PICUs and operation theatres, with regular mock drills.

NABH's March 2024 fire safety advisory for healthcare organisations (HCOs) passed on a joint advisory from the Ministry of Health and NDMA and asked hospitals to make fire safety part of their quality assurance framework. It highlights regular fire risk assessments and audits; fire prevention through safe storage of flammable materials, electrical maintenance and detection and suppression systems; staff training on evacuation, including patients with special needs; clear emergency response protocols (see emergency codes in hospitals); and regular policy reviews.

NABH's guidance does not replace statutory obligations, so a fire NOC is still needed where state rules require one. Our list of hospital licences required in India covers the fire NOC alongside other approvals, and the NABH 6th edition standards cover facility safety for accredited hospitals.

Conclusion

NBC standards for hospitals are in transition: NBCS 2026 replaced NBC 2016 on 30 April 2026, but what binds your hospital is the edition your state's fire rules and bye-laws adopt, often still NBC 2016 Part 4. Keep current approvals and audits up to date, and plan new buildings and major renovations around NBCS 2026.

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