Delhi coaching centre deaths: Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar raised concern over the commercialisation of coaching centres as he allowed a short-duration discussion in the Upper House of the Parliament over the death of three civil services aspirants who drowned in the flooded basement of a coaching centre in Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar area.
The Vice President said that coaching has become 'virtually commerce.' "I find that the youth demographic dividend of the country has to be nurtured, I further find that coaching has become virtually commerce every time we read a newspaper front one or two pages are by way of advertisements. In a country where opportunities are getting enlarged this silo is turning out to be a problem. I deem it appropriate to have a short-duration discussion under Rules 176 or a calling attention U/R 180. For that, I will confer with the leaders of the parties immediately before zero hour begins in my chamber," Rajya Sabha Chairman said.
Jagdeep Dhankhar to hold in-chamber meet
Dhankhar will also hold an in-chamber meeting with leaders of all parliamentary parties on this issue.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju agreed to discuss the matter under Rule 267, which is urgent but the LoP and Congress disagreed to discuss the matter under Rule 267. However, opposition parties were not ready to discuss under Rule 267.
What happened in Lok Sabha?
Meanwhile, in the Lok Sabha, the issue was raised during Zero Hour. BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj criticised the AAP government, attributing the deaths to its 'criminal negligence.' Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who visited RML Hospital where the injured from the incident are being treated, called for monetary compensation. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Congress MP Pappu Yadav from Bihar's Purnia also demanded an inquiry into the matter.
Congress leader KC Venugopal asked about the coaching institute incident in Delhi and the pressure on students. "Student suicide is one of the major issues in the country. In the other House, the answer was given by the minister in 2023. The major issue is that caste discrimination is also happening in the institution. Those who belong to SC, ST and OBC are treated like second line students. This issue is one of the bigger issues. I don't know whether the government is taking actions on these things. The day before yesterday, a very sad incident happened in the Delhi coaching centre. Three of the students lost lives. Some of the coaching centres have become mafia. Will the government take any action or guidelines on these things?" Venugopal asked.
Responding to Venugopal, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the government is committed to the socio-psychological welfare of students. On coaching centres, detailed guidelines were issued in January this year by the Centre to States, and some states, such as Goa and Rajasthan, have their own guidelines.
"This government is committed to socio-psychological welfare of students. Whether they are studying in the coaching centre or in institution., school education to higher education,. Regarding the coaching centres, government of India, in the month of January 2024, issued detailed guidelines to all the states," he said.
Three UPSC aspirants died
On Saturday, July 27, three UPSC aspirants died after the basement of a coaching centre in West Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar was flooded with water. Meanwhile, Delhi BJP workers and leaders protested against the AAP government in Delhi, near the AAP Office, over the Old Rajinder Nagar incident.
Delhi Municipal Corporation Commissioner Ashwani Kumar has terminated the local Junior Engineer (JE) and suspended the Assistant Engineer (AE). This marks the first significant action taken by the corporation against officials following the accident.
A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed in the Delhi High Court, seeking the formation of a high-level committee to investigate the Rajinder Nagar incident.
Delhi Police arrested five more persons, including the owner of the basement in connection with the death of three aspirants. The arrested persons included the owners of the basement and an individual who drove a vehicle which appeared to have damaged the gate of the building, sources said.
The police had earlier arrested two people -- Owner, coordinator of Rau's IAS Study Circle -- in connection with the incident on Sunday. With these arrests, total number of persons arrested in the case has gone up to 7.
Following the tragedy, students staged protests, demanding justice from the government and action against illegally used basements. The incident has ignited a political blame game among various parties.
