Alandi Diveagar Tragedy: Unregistered Academy Ran For Two Years Before 8 Students Died, Civic Body Says

Alandi: The coaching academy that organised the fatal Diveagar trip had been operating in Alandi for nearly two years without registration with the Alandi Municipal Council, civic officials said on Friday. The administration is now preparing to seal the academy and check whether the building itself had valid permissions. The revelation has raised serious questions over how the institute continued to operate despite not having municipal permission.

Officials also admitted that they are yet to verify the building permission and rent agreement of the premises. The development comes a day after eight Class XI and XII students drowned during the academy’s picnic at Diveagar in Raigad district. All eight bodies have now reached Alandi.

Academy to be sealed after eight deaths

Alandi Municipal Council Chief Officer Madhav Khandekar said the academy had not obtained permission from the civic body to conduct classes or run its business. He said the branch had been set up after a municipal survey of private tuition classes conducted around two years ago. Since it was established later, it was not registered with the council.

Khandekar said the immediate action would be to seal the academy. Further legal action related to the police department would follow. He also said the civic body is checking whether the building where the academy operated had valid permission. Officials will also verify the rent agreement and other documents linked to the premises.

“We are gathering all the details,” Khandekar said, adding that the civic administration had been busy with the rescue, ambulance arrangements, communication with parents and other arrangements after the tragedy. He said a detailed inquiry into the premises would be conducted after the last rites of the victims.

Civic body admits action is now being taken

Alandi Municipal Council president Prashant Kurade said officials would issue notices to private educational institutes in Alandi and check whether they were following government rules. He acknowledged that questions had been raised about whether the administration should have acted before the tragedy.

Kurade said any institute found to be operating without the required permissions would face action. If a building is found to be unauthorised, it would be sealed, he said. Khandekar said the civic body would also conduct a preliminary survey of other educational institutions. Institutes found operating without registration would be shut down.

Kurade said the council had previously acted against unauthorised Warkari educational institutions. Around 10 to 12 such institutions had been shut down during earlier enforcement drives, he said. However, Khandekar said 169 Warkari educational institutions are registered with the civic body, while some unregistered institutions are also operating in Alandi.

Around 40-50 students affected

The action against the academy has also raised questions about the future of the students who were studying there. Khandekar said around 40 to 50 students were enrolled at the coaching institute. The academy was offering coaching for competitive examinations such as NEET and JEE.

The administration plans to discuss the issue with the students’ parents and the institute’s directors. Officials will also discuss whether the students should be shifted to other authorised coaching institutes. The question of fee refunds will also be discussed with the parents. Khandekar said the administration would hold official discussions with them in the next two days before taking a decision.

8 bodies reach Alandi

Meanwhile, the 34 students who survived the Diveagar tragedy returned to Alandi early Friday morning. The students reached Alandi Police Station by bus at around 6.30 am. Police called their parents to the station and handed over each student to their family.

According to Alandi Police Inspector Bhima Narke, 42 students had travelled to Diveagar. The group consisted of 17 girls and 25 boys. Eight boys drowned after entering the sea at around 3 pm on Thursday. Police said the students apparently misjudged the depth of the water and the strength of the current. Some of them reportedly did not know how to swim.

The bodies of all eight students have now reached Alandi after post-mortem and other legal formalities in Raigad. The mortal remains of Kaustubh Sandeep Daund have been sent to Rahuri for his final rites. Yash Kiran Wankhede’s body has been sent to Amravati.

The final rites of the remaining victims will be conducted in Alandi. The eight victims have been identified as Yash Kiran Wankhede, Soham Tukaram Bhandwalkar, Tanmay Dattatray Vahile, Kaustubh Sandeep Daund, Kaivalya Satish Wasankar, Rajveer Yuvraj Vahile, Pranav Ramdas Bansode and Sumit Bharat Ahire.

Alandi observes bandh

Alandi is observing a bandh on Friday following the deaths. Local residents and the municipal council called for the shutdown as the town mourns the students. Kurade said the town had been deeply affected by the tragedy. He said he had attended four funerals and had seen the distress of the victims’ families.

Police personnel have been deployed across the Alandi Police Station jurisdiction to maintain law and order during the bandh. An Accidental Death Report (ADR) has been registered at Diveagar Police Station in connection with the deaths.

Narke said the academy’s director had travelled with the students on the trip. Officials from the education department also visited the academy and collected information after the incident. Teachers and students will be questioned as part of the inquiry, Narke said.

The group had visited Raigad Fort before reaching Diveagar. Later, eight boys entered the sea and were swept into deeper water. Teachers and others raised an alarm, following which local residents and water-sports operators joined the rescue effort. The eight students were brought ashore, but attempts to revive them failed.

Families seek accountability and assistance

Kurade said he would request the Chief Minister, the guardian minister, local leaders and MLA Mahesh Landge to provide financial assistance to the families of the victims. He said some of the students came from financially weaker families and urged the government to extend assistance to every affected family.

The municipal president also said action should be taken against unauthorised coaching classes. He said parents of students studying at such institutes would be contacted after they had recovered from the immediate shock of the tragedy.

The focus is now on the funerals of the eight students and the investigation into the Diveagar trip. At the same time, the civic body’s own statements have raised questions about how an allegedly unregistered coaching institute continued operating for nearly two years without its municipal registration and building permissions being fully verified.