Delhi govt to bring law to regulate coaching centres: Atishi

New Delhi: Delhi Education Minister Atishi and MCD Mayor Shelly Oberoi on Wednesday shared important updates on the actions taken by the government following the tragic deaths of three UPSC aspirants in the flooded basement of a coaching centre in the Old Rajendra Nagar on July 27.

"The interim investigation report has arrived, while the initial report from the MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) has also been submitted. Two main issues have emerged from the incident -- first, flooding in the area was caused by a blocked drain, which all the coaching centers had encroached upon, preventing water from getting discharged into the drain. Second, conducting classes and setting up a library in the coaching centre's basement was completely illegal," Atishi said at a press conference.

The Minister also said that the junior engineer responsible for the drain blockage has been permanently dismissed from the MCD, while an assistant engineer has been suspended in connection with the case.

“Action has been taken against two officers. I want to assure the people of Delhi that we will take action against any officer irrespective of rank if found guilty in the inquiry. The Magistrate's report will be available in six days, and all those responsible will face strict action.

"Bulldozers have been used to remove illegal encroachments on drains by the coaching centers. The MCD has been inspecting them for the past three days, sealing those found negligent or indulging in irregularities," the Minister said.

Atishi also said that as a long-term solution, the Delhi government would bring a law to regulate all the coaching centres in the national capital.

MCD Mayor Shelly Oberoi said, "We will meet the students soon, listen to their demands, and form a regulation based on them which the Delhi government will pass for implementation in every MCD department."

On July 27 evening, three UPSC aspirants lost their lives after heavy rainfall led to waterlogging in the basement of Rau's IAS Study Circle in the Old Rajendra Nagar area, which was being used illegally as a library.

The incident trapped 17 other students for several hours, highlighting the dire safety issues in these establishments which have mushroomed in the national capital.

The basement was used as a library in violation of the rules as the space was allowed to be used only for parking and storage purposes.