Delhi UPSC Aspirants Death: 3 students allegedly died tragically due to water filling in the basement of Rau IAS Coaching Institute in Old Rajendra Nagar. Who will take responsibility for these deaths, due to which the lights of many families died and left behind a question?
The tragic death of three civil service candidates in the basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle located in Old Rajendra Nagar, Delhi has created intense outrage among the people. The students continued the protest on Monday morning demanding justice and decisive government action.
Amid the protest by IAS candidates, Delhi Police has increased security in the area around the study center. The protesters demanded justice and compensation for the families of the deceased.
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Bulldozers were seen demolishing illegal construction at an IAS coaching institute in Old Rajendra Nagar on Monday, where three students allegedly drowned in a basement filled with floodwater two days ago.
Following the incident, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) sealed the basements of 13 civil services institutes in the Karol Bagh area. Besides, the civic body terminated the services of the junior engineer (JE) of the Rajendra Nagar area and suspended the assistant engineer (AE).
Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said, “I have received notices under Rule 267…they have sought a discussion on the tragic deaths of UPSC aspirants in Delhi due to negligence of officials.”
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The deceased have been identified as Shreya Yadav from Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh, Tanya Soni from Telangana, and Naveen Dalvin from Ernakulam in Kerala.
The Delhi Police formed multiple teams to investigate the actual cause of the incident. According to a senior official involved in the investigation, more than 35 people were trapped after water entered the basement following heavy rains on Saturday evening.
On Sunday, the Delhi Police arrested the owner and coordinator of the coaching center and charged them with culpable homicide and other charges.
The investigation revealed two main reasons for the incident. The first reason was that municipal officials failed to clear the roadside drain before the onset of the monsoon, and the second reason was the lack of a drainage system to drain out the water in the basement.
According to senior police officials, though the basement gate was closed, it got damaged when the water pressure was too high.
According to officials, the three-story coaching institute had permission to use the basement for parking and storage, but it was being illegally used as a library.
Locals suggested that drains in the area were heavily clogged with silt, while MCD officials blamed encroachers for covering drains that drain out rainwater.
(With inputs from agencies)