Delhi govt to bring law to regulate coaching centres’ infrastructure, fees: Atishi

Delhi minister Atishi on Wednesday announced that basements of 30 coaching centres have been sealed so far and 200 more institutes illegally running classes and libraries in their basements have been served notice.

The coaching centres whose basements have been sealed include Drishti IAS, Vajiram, Sriram IAS, Sanskriti Academy, and IAS Gurukul, among others.

Providing an update on the action taken by the government following the deaths of three civil services aspirants in the flooded basement of a coaching centre, Atishi said a junior engineer responsible for ensuring drain maintenance, no encroachment, and no illegal activity, has been terminated from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

An assistant engineer responsible for ensuring the proper functioning of the drain and adherence to rules and regulations laid out in the building completion certificate has been suspended, she added.

“Action has been taken against these two officers. I want to assure the people of the country and Delhi that we will take action against any officer irrespective of rank who is found guilty in the inquiry. The magisterial inquiry report will come in six days, and there will be strict action,” the minister told a press briefing.

As a long-term solution, Atishi said, the Delhi government would bring a law to regulate all coaching institutes in the national capital.

The Delhi government will constitute a committee comprising officials and students from coaching hubs to formulate regulations for coaching centres, she added.

The law will not only specify the infrastructure requirement and qualification of the teachers, but it will also regulate the fees of the coaching institutes, according to Atishi.

Three civil services aspirants died due to flooding of the Rau’s IAS Study Circle building basement in the central Delhi coaching hub of Old Rajinder Nagar following heavy rain on July 27.

On Tuesday, students holding a protest after the tragedy began an indefinite hunger strike to demand action in the case. More than 400 students have been participating in the protest for the past three days amid heavy police deployment.