Action in Delhi after Lucknow fire, hundreds of buildings flouting rules sealed, ‘special team’ of DM-police deployed
Delhi. After the massive fire in Lucknow’s coaching center (in which 15 students died) and the tragic fire in South Delhi’s Hauz Rani earlier this month, the Delhi administration is now in full action mode. A major multi-agency drive has been launched to ensure compliance with fire and building safety standards in coaching centers and other educational institutions in Delhi.
Giving information about this mega-campaign on Tuesday, Delhi Mayor Pravesh Wahi said that very strict steps are being taken against the institutions that flout security rules.
Hundreds of properties sealed, demolition of illegal 5th and 6th floors
Mayor Parvesh Wahi said that within the last few days, the Municipal Corporation has taken direct action against many such dangerous buildings, where there was a serious risk to the life and property of the people. “Hundreds of properties have been sealed and a large-scale demolition drive has been conducted against illegal constructions,” he said. Those buildings have been specifically targeted where the fifth and sixth floors were constructed illegally without any administrative permission.
‘Special team’ formed under the supervision of District Magistrate and Police
To make the security check transparent and effective, a special team has been formed under the strict monitoring of the District Magistrate (DM) and the police. The team includes top officials from various departments, including the Municipal Corporation (MCD) and Delhi Fire Service (DFS), who are conducting surprise inspections in different parts of the city.
The Mayor made it clear that this action is not limited only to select student areas like Mukherjee Nagar or Old Rajendra Nagar, but is being continued consistently and uniformly in South Delhi, North Delhi and all other areas. He has appealed to general residents, Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to immediately report to the administration any violations of such rules that pose a threat to public safety.
Two major accidents increased Delhi’s concern
This fear and urgency regarding security in the densely populated student centers of Delhi has not come suddenly, but behind it are two big and terrible accidents that have happened recently. On Monday itself, the concerns reached its peak in Delhi after the fire in a three-storey building in Lucknow, where 15 people (mainly students) studying in an animation center lost their lives.
Hauz Rani Hotel fire: Earlier this month, 23 people died tragically in a massive fire in a five-storey hotel located in the Hauz Rani area of South Delhi. The seriousness of this accident can be gauged from the fact that the dead included foreign nationals from Nigeria, Kyrgyzstan, Bangladesh, Iraq, Congo, Mozambique and Liberia.
Questions were burning since Mukherjee Nagar incident
Thousands of students in these areas study in coaching institutes which are operating illegally in mixed-use or commercial buildings. Earlier in June 2023, there was a massive fire in a coaching institute located in Mukherjee Nagar, Delhi. Although a large number of students were evacuated safely through windows and ropes, the incident also exposed the lack of emergency preparedness and compliance with fire safety standards in Delhi’s commercial hubs. Now the administration seems ready to completely eliminate these shortcomings.
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