The Supreme Court of India on Monday (August 5) took suo motu cognizance of UPSC aspirants' deaths in Delhi's Rau's IAS Study Circle and said that such coaching centres have become 'death chambers'. The top court has sent notices to the central government and Delhi state government asking what safety rules had been laid down to ensure students' safety, adding that coaching centres were 'playing with the lives of children.
“These places (coaching centres) have become death chambers. Coaching institutes can operate online unless there is full compliance of the safety norms and basic norms for a dignified life. Coaching centres are playing with the lives of aspirants who come from different parts of the country,” said a Supreme Court bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan as quoted by Press Trust of India.
“Safety norms require proper ventilation, safety passage, air and light, fire safety norms and such other requirements prescribed under law,” said the bench calling the incident at Rau's IAS Study Centre an 'eye opener' for everyone.
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The issue of students' safety at the coaching centres hit national headlines after three students died at Rau's IAS Study Circle on July 27 after water rapidly filled the basement where they were studying. It was revealed that use of the basement as a library violated rules. The building is located in New Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar area.
UPSC coaching centres in the capital see aspirants from across the country arriving to prepare for the tough exams. These classes charge exorbitant fees. Following the incident at Rau's IAS Study Circle, authorities swooped in on coaching institutes and closed down many which were found to be violating laws and norms.
On Friday last week, the Delhi High Court transferred investigation into Rau's IAS Study Circle incident from Delhi Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
