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NATION AUGUST 09, 2024 | The Indian Eye 6

DEATHS BY NEGLIGENCE

Blame game and protests continue as coaching

center students agitate over poor conditions

Dr Vikas Divyakirti, founder and MD of Drishti IAS, has said that there is no single authority to
regulate coaching centers and there is a deficiency in coordination among various agencies

OUR BUREAU
New Delhi
rotests outside the coaching institutes in Del-
hi’s Rajinder Nagar continue for the fourth
Pday on Wednesday after three UPSC aspi-
rants lost their lives in a flooding incident at the
basement of the Rau’s IAS coaching center. The
students have been protesting because they believe
that their demands have not been met yet.
A student stated that they are in talks with
the authorities and the work for some of their de-
mands has started. “We are holding regular talks
with the Delhi Police. We will also bring new de-
mands. Officials are working to resolve some of
the demands,” she said.
Amid widespread concern over the deaths of
three civil services aspirants due to drowning in-
side a coaching center in Delhi, Dr Vikas Divya-
kirti, founder and MD of Drishti IAS, has said that
there is no single authority to regulate coaching
centers and there is a deficiency in coordination
among various agencies.
In an interview, Divyakirti said education is a
concurrent subject and while the Education Min-
istry had issued model guidelines for regulation
of coaching centers, states have not taken serious Delhi police attempt to stop the protest of students in the Old Rajinder Nagar as they demonstrate against the death of three stu-
steps in this regard. “There is no authority to regu-
late coaching centers. There is for schools, colleges dents after the basement of their coaching institute was flooded with rainwater on July 27, in New Delhi on Wednesday (ANI)
and universities, but not for coaching institutes.
The central government has proposed a policy on leading to waterlogging around the academy. severe waterlogging, Delhi Minister Atishi said on
it. As education comes under concurrent list, the Wednesday that the interim inquiry report by the
Centre pushes state governments to make laws on He attributed the deaths of three students MCD has come. She added that the inquiry report
it, although, states haven’t taken a serious step in highlighted that the drain present in the area was
this regard, but Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan to the waterlogging, which caused a back- the main reason for the waterlogging and that the
have taken some steps in this regard,” he said. flow into the basement. Kapoor blamed library set up in the coaching center was illegal.
Divyakirti said the 2016 building bye-laws con- “An interim inquiry report has been received
cerning Delhi were amended in 2020 and under Minister Atishi and Mayor Dr. Oberoi for by MCD, and a preliminary report has been sub-
the heading of educational building coaching insti- failing to ensure the drains were cleaned, mitted. Two key things that came to light regarding
tutes were added, which meant, the norms of edu- the coaching center incident, were that the drain,
cational building will apply to coaching institutes. despite their claims otherwise. which is the reason for the waterlogging in that
Meanwhile, Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party area, was encroached upon by all the coaching cen-
(BJP) Spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor has He criticized Mayor Oberoi for attempting to ters there, because of which water was not going
expressed regret that Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi is divert attention to illegal basements instead of ad- down the drain. The other thing is, the way coach-
politicizing the enforcement actions against coach- dressing the actual problem. Kapoor urged AAP ing centers were running classes in the basement
ing centers operating from basements, especially leaders, including the Mayor, to stop interfering and libraries were set up, was 100 per cent illegal.
when the Municipal Corporation is addressing the is- with actions against illegal institutes and PG ac- The permission given to the coaching center by the
sue holistically under Ashwani Kumar’s leadership. commodations in Rajinder Nagar and other parts building department was to use the basement only
Kapoor highlighted that the primary focus is of Delhi, and let the Municipal Commissioner as a storage or parking space. The rest of the inqui-
on Rajinder Nagar, where a library was illegally op- handle it directly. ry report will come in seven days,” she said.
erating from the basement of Rau’s Academy, and Also, following the deaths of three students at Further, she said that after the magisterial re-
the drains in Old Rajinder Nagar were clogged, a coaching institute in Old Rajinder Nagar due to port would come, strict action would be taken.

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