The Supreme Court is set to hear a case on Monday regarding the tragic drowning of three civil service aspirants at Rau’s IAS Study Circle in July. The court will evaluate safety measures and hold relevant authorities accountable to prevent such incidents from happening again in the future.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India is set to hear a critical case on Monday concerning the tragic drowning of three civil service aspirants at a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar. The incident occurred on July 27, when heavy rainfall caused flooding in the basement library of Rau’s IAS Study Circle, leading to the untimely deaths of Shreya Yadav (25), Tanya Soni (25), and Nevin Delvin (24).
The unfortunate event has raised significant concerns about the safety regulations in coaching institutes across the National Capital Region (NCR). The Supreme Court’s upcoming hearing will involve a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, focusing on the measures required to prevent such tragedies in the future.
In its earlier hearing on September 20, the Supreme Court directed a Union government-appointed committee to provide an interim report detailing preventive measures that should be implemented. This call to action extends beyond merely addressing the specific case; the apex court has urged the Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi governments to outline the policy, legislative, and administrative changes they have enacted since the incident.
The court has emphasized the need for uniform initiatives throughout the NCR to ensure that similar incidents do not occur again, stating, “Uniform initiatives should be taken in the entire National Capital Region (NCR) to prevent another Old Rajinder Nagar-type incident from happening.”
Attorney General R Venkataramani confirmed that the Centre has established a high-level committee to examine the incident comprehensively. The committee is expected to evaluate interventions at various levels—legislative, policy, and administrative—while also gathering insights from all relevant stakeholders.
This inquiry aims to address the “wider canvas” of safety measures required across India, highlighting the Supreme Court’s commitment to ensuring that such tragedies do not recur nationwide.
In a stark critique, the Supreme Court previously remarked that coaching centres have become “death chambers”, jeopardizing the lives of students who enroll there. The court took cognizance of the matter while hearing a petition from an association of coaching centres challenging a December 2023 order by the Delhi High Court. This order mandated that the city’s fire services and civic bodies inspect all coaching centres to ensure compliance with fire safety norms.
In a significant step, the Delhi High Court transferred the investigation into the drowning of the three students from the Delhi Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), aiming to eliminate any public doubts regarding the investigation’s integrity.
The loss of three promising civil service aspirants has sparked a nationwide conversation about safety standards in coaching centres. As the Supreme Court prepares to hear this crucial case, the hope remains that meaningful changes will arise from this tragedy, safeguarding future generations of students. The court’s involvement signifies a step towards holding institutions accountable for the safety of their students and ensuring that such heartbreaking incidents are not repeated.
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