Delhi coaching centre tragedy: Basements of six coaching centres sealed in Bhopal
Authorities said that officials of the fire department and electrical safety unit were also part of the inspection teams that directed the sealing
Bhopal district administration sealed the basement and office of eight coaching academy that tutors students for NEET, IIT-JEE, in the city on Tuesday after Delhi’s Old Rajendra Nagar mishap that claimed lives of three students.
| Photo Credit: FARUQUI AM
Basements of at least six coaching centres that were found operational were sealed in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal on Tuesday, in a crackdown against illegal functioning in view of the death of three UPSC aspirants by drowning at an institute in Delhi.
According to various officials, safety inspections were conducted at nine institutes in the capital city’s M.P. Nagar area, known as a hub of coaching centres for competitive exams here.
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On July 27, three civil service aspirants died in the basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle in Old Rajinder Nagar after a drain burst following heavy rains in the area. The deceased were identified as Shreya Yadav (25) from Uttar Pradesh; Tanya Soni (25) from Telangana; and Nevin Dalvin (28) from Kerala. The Delhi police has so far arrested seven persons, including the building owner and the coordinator of the centre, in connection with the case.
Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), M.P. Nagar, Ashutosh Sharma told The Hindu that six of the nine institutes were found having operations setup in their basements.
He also said that minor water-logging was also found in the basement of one institute, Aurous Academy, an institute for NEET and JEE entrance preparation.
“Hence, we have sealed its office too. We will now ask all these institutes to produce necessary documents and further action will be taken based on that,” he said.
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Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), M.P. Nagar, Akshay Choudhary said that while no classes were being conducted in basements at the time of the inspection, the team found evidences of classroom setups at various coaching centres.
“We found tables and chairs and a classroom setting in the basement of some coaching centres. So, we have sealed those basements,” he said.
Mr. Sharma also said that officials of fire department and electrical safety unit were also part of the inspection teams to check other safety aspects.
“We have recently conducted a fire safety audit of all coachings in the area. We will now continue the drive to ensure that operations are not conducted in basements and students safety put to risk,” he added.
The crackdown comes just a day after Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav directed officials to conduct surveys and inspections across the State of coaching centres, hostels and other institutes operating in basements of buildings.
Mr. Yadav, at a meeting to review the flood and rain situation in the State on Monday, had asked officials and all civic bodies to ensure necessary safety measures for students.
Similar inspections were also carried out in other cities of the State. In Indore, Municipal Corporation officials also inspected some institutes.
Gitesh Tiwari, a building officer at the civic body, told reporters, “I inspected two centres. At one place, the basement was being used for parking only. At Resonance institute, we have found three to four rooms in the basements but the director is claiming that they stopped operations a few days ago. We will take action now as per the [Municipal] Commissioner’s directions.”
He added that hospitals, hotels, and other such establishments will also be checked for basement operations.
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