UPSC Aspirants Protest Outside Drishti IAS As MCD Seals Its Basement After Coaching Centre Deaths

Amid a crackdown by the MCD, UPSC aspirants staged a massive protest outside Drishti IAS in Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar after its basement was sealed as part of action against coaching centres running “illegal” classes.

The prominent institute, run by educator and YouTuber Vikas Divyakirti, was among the six institutes whose basements were sealed by the civic body after the tragic deaths of three IAS students in Old Rajinder Nagar. Videos of the protest went viral, shared by social media users. Students can be heard raising slogans of ‘We Want Justice’ in the clips.

Five other coaching centres were sealed in Old Rajinder Nagar area after the civic body found that the basements were being used as libraries or to run classes. A total of 20 institutes have faced action since the flooding incident on July 27, in which three IAS aspirants — Shreya Yadav from Uttar Pradesh, Tanya Soni from Telangana and Nevin Delvin from Kerala — drowned in the basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle.

MCD cracks whip on prominent institutes

Apart from Drishti IAS in Mukherjee Nagar, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) sealed the basements of other well-known coaching centres like Vaji Ram and Ravi IAS hub, as well as SriRam IAS Institute in Rajinder Nagar. This comes as the civic body has initiated a three-pronged action in the aftermath of the basement tragedy.

According to officials, three basements in the building of Vaji Ram and Ravi IAS hub were sealed. “Whereas it has been brought to my notice that basement of single unit local shopping centre, Vardhman Mall, Nehru Vihar, (combined Basement of Tower 1, 2 and 3) is being used for coaching centre, teaching centre, institutes in the name and style as Dristi (The Vision) the instance of owner and occupier in violation of clause 15.9 of MPD-2021,” read a notice pasted at the entrance of a coaching centre in Mukherjee Nagar.

Similar notices were pasted at the entrance of the basements sealed by the civic body in both the coaching hubs. The MCD is sealing illegally run basements and demolishing illegal structures blocking storm water drains. As part of its anti-encroachment drive, it removed platforms and ramps from outside coaching centres in Old Rajinder Nagar.

Civic commissioner Ashwani Kumar said the sealing drive will also be carried out against establishments illegally using basements for commercial activities in other parts of the city.

“Till Sunday (July 28), we took action against 13 basements of coaching institutes running in Rajinder Nagar. On Monday (July 29), we resumed the sealing drive and sealed six more basements of such institutes in the same area. The MCD also carried out an anti-encroachment drive to remove structures covering the storm drains. Additionally, the basement of a coaching institute has been sealed in Mukherjee Nagar, where a sealing drive was also carried out by us,” Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi said.

Students facing problems

The crackdown, however, has caused issues for those preparing for the civil services examination. Many students said most coaching centres use the basements as libraries, which are regularly accessed, and have been closed in wake of the deaths.

“I have to appear for UPSC Mains in one and a half months and the library at my centre has been closed. My books and all the preparation material are inside the library and now I am not allowed to collect my books,” a UPSC aspirant studying at one of the coaching centres in Mukherjee Nagar, told PTI.

The student added: “We got a message on Sunday night, saying we should collect our books, from the library by 6 am today. I was sleeping so how was I supposed to collect them by morning. Most students here are preparing for UPSC Mains.”

(With PTI inputs)