“We have to take concrete steps now to prevent such an incident from happening again,” said civil services aspirant Rahul Sharma, who was staging a sit-in protest in Old Rajinder Nagar demanding justice for the three students who drowned in the basement of a coaching centre in west Delhi.
Sharma, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, is among hundreds of aspirants protesting near the IAS Study Circle in Rau, where a horrific situation had developed on Saturday night when students were trapped in a basement illegally used as a library due to rising floodwaters.
A Delhi court will hear the anticipatory bail plea of trainee IAS Pooja Khedkar today.
On Monday evening, students took out a candlelight vigil near the institute where the incident took place. Some students were sitting with their phone flash lights on.
While Lok Sabha members cutting across party lines demanded a probe into the tragic incident that claimed the lives of Shreya Yadav from Uttar Pradesh, Tanya Soni from Telangana and Navin Dalvin from Kerala, protesters accused the Municipal Corporation of Delhi of negligence.
Also read: Patna District Magistrate ordered to investigate all the coaching centers in the district
Sharma said, “If we ignore this incident, more students will die. We will not get justice for our fellow students. If we do not fight for our rights now, how will we be able to serve the country in the future? This is sheer negligence on the part of the authorities.”
Another protesting student, who did not wish to be named, said, “The MCD is the biggest culprit. Whenever it rains, the roads get flooded and there is a danger of falling into an open manhole or getting an electric shock and dying. Anything can happen.”
Look at this: Students’ protest continues in Old Rajinder Nagar against the death of three UPSC candidates
A 26-year-old civil services aspirant died allegedly after suffering an electric shock following heavy rains in Patel Nagar area near Old Rajinder Nagar on July 22.
Another candidate, Kanishka, claimed that they had written a letter to the MCD last week regarding the waterlogging problem near the institute, but no action was taken.
“I came here last week, saw the waterlogging and complained to the MCD on Wednesday. Three days later, this happened. This is sheer negligence,” Kanishka said.
After the incident, municipal corporation officials launched an anti-encroachment drive in Old Rajinder Nagar. On Sunday, 13 illegal coaching centres were sealed in this area. This area is a hub of coaching institutes.
However, students said that nearly 95 per cent of the libraries located in the area, most of which are in basements, have been closed by their owners to avoid disturbance.
This has put their future at stake, as without libraries, preparing for the upcoming exams is a difficult task.
“Around 400 to 600 students study in these basement libraries every day. Some coaching centres run their classes in the basement,” said Satyam Singh, an aspirant from Uttar Pradesh.
He said many PG residences also have libraries in the basement as it is necessary for students who have different study schedules.
Another student said, “All basement libraries should be closed permanently as these are not safe. Most of these have only one entry and exit and that too is narrow.” He said libraries are necessary but they should not be in basements.
Some students questioned the arrest of Rau’s IAS Study Circle CEO and owner Abhishek Gupta, coordinator Deshpal Singh and the basement owner.
“95 per cent of the libraries in this area are in basements. How many are they (police) going to arrest? The problem is the drainage system and its maintenance.
“Every time it rains, the roads here get flooded. The administration and the MCD should solve this problem,” said Suraj, a student from Bihar who has been living in Rajendra Nagar for the past four years.
The students said that the area around the coaching centre where the incident took place gets waterlogged whenever there is heavy rain and the problem has been persisting for the past several years.
Sahil, who came to Rajinder Nagar as an aspirant several years ago and now teaches at a coaching centre, said, “Waterlogging has always been a problem in this area.”
On Monday, when the MCD started demolishing encroachments on drains to drain out rainwater in the area, the students termed the action as too little and too late.
A student said, “Machines have been brought to remove encroachment so that there is no waterlogging due to the media being here. This work should have been done earlier.”
In the wake of the incident, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar termed the culture of coaching centres as “gas chambers” and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said responsibility must be fixed so that such incidents do not recur.
