Three students died due to water logging in the basement of Rao IAS Study Circle in Old Rajend Nagar area of Central Delhi. These include two girls. The incident took place on Saturday and the administration woke up from sleep three days later i.e. on Monday. The central government has constituted a seven-member high-level committee for investigation. This committee will investigate the accident and decide accountability. It will recommend changes in the policy and will submit its report to the government within 30 days and will tell what measures should be implemented to prevent such accidents.
Meanwhile, Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena also reached the spot on Monday and talked to the students. LG assured that responsibility will be fixed and action will be taken. He announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each to the families of the three students killed in the accident. Assured action within 24 hours against Delhi Fire Service, Police and Delhi Municipal Corporation officials found guilty of the incident. However, the anger of the students did not subside. He says that we do not want compensation, we want justice.
BJP-Congress protest against AAP…
A lot of politics was also seen on this accident on Monday. There was an uproar in the MCD House also, due to which the proceedings of the House had to be adjourned. Congress, which was contesting the general elections along with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi, also came into the field and staged a protest. As soon as the MCD meeting was adjourned, BJP-Congress leaders sat on strike. BJP also surrounded the Kejriwal government. BJP demonstrated outside AAP office in protest against Water Board, Fire Service and MCD. BJP also demanded the resignation of CM Kejriwal. At the same time, the Aam Aadmi Party also demanded dismissal of the officials who allegedly failed to issue instructions to remove silt from the drains and protested near the LG Secretariat.
The matter echoed in Parliament also
This matter also echoed in the Parliament and in the Lok Sabha, BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj held the Delhi government responsible. SP supremo Akhilesh Yadav asked, UP government runs bulldozers on encroachment. Will bulldozers be used here also? Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said, safety standards have been violated. Drains should be cleaned. Steps should be taken to prevent recurrence of such incidents.
Delhi Police has also given notice to MCD and sought information. Delhi Police asked, which officer is responsible for the drainage system in Old Rajendra Nagar area? Who looks after the cleanliness of the area? Was anyone given work on contract in the area?
MCD came into action, arrived with bulldozer
Delhi Municipal Corporation teams were also seen in action on Monday. Teams reached the spot with bulldozers and drove the bulldozers on the encroachments in the coaching center areas. The encroachment covering the storm water drains in Old Rajinder Nagar has been demolished. This campaign will continue for the next few days. Earlier, MCD teams had sealed about 20 such coaching centers in Old Rajendra Nagar and Mukherjee Nagar, where libraries and classes were being conducted in the basement. MCD said that drainage got choked due to encroachment. Many coaching centers constructed buildings and closed the drainage system. A JEN has been fired from his job after being found negligent. An AEN has been suspended. Show cause notice has been given to regional XEN.
Investigation has revealed that due to rain, excess water had accumulated on the road. The drains on the roadside were covered by encroachers, due to which cleanliness could not be done and when there was flood, the roads were flooded.
Seven arrests so far?
Police have made seven arrests so far. Among them, coaching center owner Abhishek Gupta and coordinator Deshpal, four building owners and Manuj Kathuria, the driver of the SUV car, due to which the pressure on the road increased and broke the gate of the coaching center and entered the basement, have also been arrested. All the seven accused were presented in the court, from where they were sent to Tihar Jail for 14 days judicial custody. The building has four owners. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) M Harsh Vardhan said that each floor of the building is owned by different people. These include the names of Tejinder Singh, Parvinder Singh, Harvinder Singh and Sarabjit Singh.
How did the accident happen?
Those who died on Sunday were identified as Shreya Yadav (22 years) from UP, Tanya Soni (21 years) from Telangana, Nevin Dalvin (29 years) from Kerala. Rajendra Nagar police station has registered an FIR under the sections of culpable homicide, death due to negligence, negligence in maintenance of the building and intentionally causing hurt. It is clearly written in the police FIR that there was no proper arrangement for drainage of water, hence the basement was filled with water. There was only one entry-exit point in the basement and the library was running illegally. The biometric system has completed the necessary task. The biometric system was closed due to flood. If exit was free then students could have run away. The basement was filled with 12 feet of water in 3 minutes. Due to lack of drainage system, it took more than five hours to get the water out during the rescue operation.
Will agencies be able to prevent accidents?
Now the big question arises that will the agencies that woke up late be able to prevent accidents like Old Rajendra Nagar? Or will such accidents not happen again? Although, it is difficult to say, but till now it has been seen that the government agencies remain active only for a few days after the accident and claim to strictly follow the rules. Later the situation becomes the same and the careless system leaves people to their fate. Such accidents in Delhi not only expose the system but also put people’s lives in danger. Here the responsibility of managing the arrangements is in the hands of the Central Government, Delhi Government, Lieutenant Governor and Delhi Municipal Corporation. When a major accident occurs, the administration claims to take immediate action. Gives assurance of enforcing strict rules. Action is also taken against some people, but with time the entire system becomes sluggish. In June 2023 also, a fire broke out in a coaching center located in Mukherjee Nagar. To save their lives, students jumped from the third floor of the building. After this incident, everything from the NOC of the fire brigade to the construction work came under the scanner. From MCD to other investigating agencies had claimed to have conducted the audit. But after a few days, the same situation happened again and now an accident like Old Rajendra Nagar has put the system under question. There is a long list of such accidents in Delhi.
At present, after this incident, the Lieutenant Governor’s office said in a statement, a joint task force of MCD and DFS formed under the orders of Delhi High Court earlier this year will survey all the buildings in Rajendra Nagar area. It will seal all basements and other illegal structures that are violating building bylaws, MPD 2021 and fire safety norms.
Complaints were made, but ignored
Investigation revealed that the clearance certification obtained by the building owner from the MCD clearly stated that the parking below the ground floor and the basement below it would be used only for parking and storage of vehicles. But, instead of that, a library was being operated here. Delhi Fire Service had renewed the NOC of this building for three years on July 9 itself. Not only this, on June 24, student Kanishka Tiwari had complained to the Public Works Department (PWD) of Delhi Government about waterlogging in the basement of the coaching centre. In this complaint he had highlighted the problem of waterlogging in the area. Kanishka Tiwari was also given confirmation from PWD officials that her complaint has been forwarded to MCD.
Sources say that police investigation has also revealed that a student had lodged a complaint with the Delhi government a month ago that a library was being operated illegally in the basement. However, no action was taken. This is not the first time that rain water has flooded a library. There are many such buildings in Old Rajendra Nagar, in which libraries are being operated in the basement and they get filled with rain water. Police investigation revealed that the building owners had given the basement on rent to the coaching center in 2021. There was no drainage system in the basement. Now the police can inquire from the MCD officials about the clearance certificate.
What to expect from the system…
To prevent accidents like Old Rajendra Nagar, agencies need to work at many levels. Timely action should be taken to prevent such incidents in densely populated areas like Delhi. There should be regular inspections and better planning is needed. Although these measures cannot completely prevent accidents, they can reduce the risk to a great extent. Such accidents can be prevented only by the activeness of local agencies and vigilance of citizens.
Strict rules and inspections: Strict rules should be implemented for construction works and it is necessary to ensure their regular inspection. For this, the local municipal corporation and development authorities will have to work actively.
Fire Safety: Availability of fire safety equipment in buildings and their proper functioning is essential. Every building should have a fire drill and emergency exit plan.
Identification of sensitive areas: Sensitive areas should be identified and special attention should be paid there. It has to be ensured that the construction work is safe and the risk of any kind of accident is reduced.
Citizens’ Participation: Local residents also need to be aware. It is important to encourage them to report any unsafe activity. For this, helpline numbers and online platforms can be created.
Strength of structure: The structural strength of all old buildings will have to be checked. If any danger is found in any building then it should be rectified immediately.
Active Surveillance: The agencies will have to actively monitor the construction sites and take immediate action if any irregularities are found.
Use of modern technology: Construction sites can be monitored and inspected using drones and other technological devices.
Follow the rules: It should be ensured that all construction related rules are followed. If any kind of irregularity is found, it will be necessary to take strict action.