Delhi Coaching Deaths: Where Does The Buck Stop? | OneIndia

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In this interview Dr. Amrita Dass – Founder & Director, Institute for Career Studies, discusses how Delhi coaching centers have ignored the major security concerns and well being of the students and what needs to be done ? she recommends that the coaching centers should ensure safe, secure and conducive environment for the students.

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Transcript

00:00What transpired is absolutely shocking, it's heartrending and it's criminal, it's callousness

00:09because these organizations amass a lot of money and the students who are aspirants come with great

00:18hope. The parents invest in ensuring that their hopes and dreams are realized

00:25but that callousness is shocking and I would say that it's a wake-up call for everybody. Minimal

00:37requirements and these requirements are in any way violated, there's some kind of punitive action

00:46that has to be there. These kids have come far away from home. Now I found when students go to

00:52study in top institutions in US, Canada, UK, Singapore, the universities there take it upon

01:01themselves to advise students where they can stay. Area-wise monitoring should happen just like you

01:07have police stations which are there area-wise, so there should be monitoring systems area-wise.

01:16Hello and welcome to this special broadcast on One India as the unfortunate deaths of three

01:21UPSC aspirants rocked not just the country but also shook up the consciousness of

01:29every individual in the country. There are so many questions concerns and questions raising

01:34on the rules and regulations that guide these coaching institutes plus the safety apparatus,

01:42the security and the upkeep of upkeep and compliance of the rules set by several

01:49administrative bodies, how best it can be tackled and secondly from the education sector what needs

01:55to be done. To discuss that further we are joined by Dr Amrita Das, Founder and Director, Institute

02:02for Career Studies also known as ICS. Dr Das, thank you so much for speaking to One India.

02:09I'm delighted to be with One India because you're doing really wonderful work in creating awareness

02:17for the benefit and well-being of all. These are very important aspects that you're looking into.

02:23Definitely ma'am and the need of the hour has actually pushed not just the media fraternity

02:28I would say but all the concerned stakeholders including the educationists, the authorities,

02:33the administration and the institutions like yours, like Institute for Career Studies which

02:41focuses on the bigger picture. In your opinion Dr Das, what transpired in old Rajindranagar in

02:49Delhi, how do you see it in totality and what exactly needs to be done as of now?

02:56Pankaj, what transpired is absolutely shocking, it's heart-rending and it's criminal the manner

03:05in which the major security concerns and well-being of the students was ignored,

03:12it's callousness because these organizations amass a lot of money and the students who are

03:21aspirants come with great hope. The parents invest in ensuring that their hopes and dreams are

03:29realized but that callousness is shocking and I would say that it's a wake-up call for everybody.

03:41Now what we need to look at is that every institution should ensure a safe, secure

03:50and conducive environment for the students, safe, secure and conducive. Now when we look at

03:57security, disasters are happening with increasing frequency and one of the reasons for that

04:05is that the various mandatory compliances are ignored and there's not enough compliances.

04:14So in this case when it comes to security, I would strongly recommend that we re-look

04:22at issues like fire safety. Now also when it's a matter of flooding, look at what

04:35chances are there of flooding in the basements and I believe there are basements which are

04:43lower ground and upper ground. If you are in the lowest part of the basement and it's flooding

04:51and there's no outlet for the water, then there's no escape for the persons who are trapped.

04:57That's absolutely, absolutely shocking. So we need to look at these aspects of security

05:05with regard flooding, with regard to fire, have well-defined escape routes, that's one.

05:13Secondly, we need to ensure the optimal number of seats as per the size of the room.

05:23They are way beyond what is more than healthy, more than you have, they're just

05:32stuffy classrooms. So there should be some kind of requirement there, proper lighting,

05:40air conditioning, pure drinking water, often it's not there, pure drinking water,

05:47hygienic toilet facilities. So all these should be mandatory and I would recommend that the list

05:58of these mandatory requirements should be signed by parents and students that they've done a check

06:06and they're satisfied. And if they're not satisfied where they should report it.

06:12So I think this is a very, very important area where everybody is aware of the

06:20mandatory requirements for the safety, security and well-being of the students.

06:25Absolutely. There are so many aspects to it, while you were conversing and putting

06:33these pointers out.

06:38Since we covered this unfortunate incident from the ground, we spoke to, I guess,

06:42more than 500 students who are protesting there. And you're right, when we talked about basic

06:49amenities like clean drinking water, toilet facilities, ventilated rooms, not stuffed rooms

06:57and not jam-packed. Even the top notch names, in this case, the UPSC coaching centers,

07:06even they are found, you know, a ring on these pointers. Many said that when they go there for

07:14admission, they will offer you juice, they will offer you water, cold drinking water. But after

07:19that, once they enter the classrooms, then you have to take permission even to take a toilet

07:25break. So such is the inhumane condition at times. In your opinion, ma'am, because we also

07:32gather it's a vicious cycle of demand and supply. If you or your kid doesn't go, or my kid doesn't

07:39go to that class saying, this is not apt for me, maybe someone else will go. So the compliance

07:45factor comes in. In what ways do you think that these institutions of higher learnings and coaching

07:53centers can be made accountable to the students or the parents? They can be made accountable

08:01once there's this list mandated as a minimal requirements. And these requirements are in any

08:12way violated, there's some kind of punitive action that has to be there. Also, I agree that if I don't

08:21join, somebody else will come in. But in this case, if there are these requirements, which are mandatory,

08:29for instance, if you cannot have more than 80 students in a class, start a second batch or a

08:36third batch. So I think that is important. I also feel that there should be medical emergency

08:45facilities. So there should be lists of doctors who can be called ambulances that can be called

08:53that also is the responsibility of institutes which have these students all day long.

09:00So the medical factor needs to be looked at. And one more, these kids have come far away from home.

09:08Now, I found when students go to study in top institutions in US, Canada, UK, Singapore,

09:16the universities there take it upon themselves to advise students where they can stay.

09:22And they have looked at accommodations, which are safe for the students. So I think

09:28our responsibility extends beyond the classroom to ensure the well-being of students and to

09:35actually see what would be a safe place for them to stay in during their presence.

09:45Accommodation was almost, if not bigger, ma'am, of almost an equal concern of the students,

09:52apart from the safety and upkeep of the buildings by MCD or by the concerned institutions. And

10:01if you talk about, say, Bukharji Nagar, Patel Nagar, old Rajinder Nagar, which are almost

10:07synonymous to, you know, cracking IAS examinations, UBS examinations, then accommodation,

10:14ma'am, is something that definitely needs a closer look. We spoke to property dealers also,

10:20but that's a very concerning but a different aspect. I wanted to know from you, ma'am, that

10:26the government has taken note of it. Drishti IAS came up with a statement saying that

10:35we need to have a bigger and a better plan for it. A panel also, I think, has now started to

10:44look into it. What recommendations do you think should be given from their side, or if you can

10:50share what is needed from the government side in order to make it uniform? From the government side,

10:57we need those requirements to be specified. And the requirements to be specified would relate to,

11:04first of all, security. And for security, there should be clear-cut norms about how to be secure

11:16from, say, an outbreak of fire. So, do you have fire extinguishers which are working?

11:22Are you doing regular drills for the students to vacate should there be an emergency?

11:29So, normally, in such buildings, there's always an exit which is created for people to escape,

11:38which could be a removable window frame. So, do you have that? In case of flooding,

11:45how are you going to deal with it? So, are you doing regular checks on the drainage system?

11:51So, that is important, the drainage system in and around that particular building.

11:57In addition to that, norms of the size of the classroom, the air conditioning, so that it's

12:04not stuffy, so it's not full of carbon dioxide, clean drinking water, toilet facilities, all of

12:11this should be done. And it's not something that will cost the earth. You just have to take care of

12:18the basic requirements. Doctor and poor medical facilities, because students are there from

12:28across the country, they're not close to their families or homes. So, these institutions should

12:36play the role of the family of ensuring that if there's a medical emergency, how do we provide

12:43that help and support? So, all these should be factored in and should be monitored. So,

12:51monitoring is important and area-wise monitoring should happen, just like you have

12:58police stations which are there area-wise. So, there should be monitoring systems area-wise

13:06which need to be in place. Absolutely. Dr. Das, I would really thank you for taking time out and

13:14sharing your views on this, because this is something that we hope that has a logical end.

13:20Don't miss out. Follow One India for real-time updates.

Delhi Coaching Deaths: Where Does The Buck Stop? | OneIndia

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