The Delhi High Court, on Thursday, November 23, asked coaching centres in the city to state the measures adopted by them to ensure the safety of students on their premises.

As per a report by PTI, the court was hearing a suo motu case of a fire that broke out at a coaching centre in Mukherjee Nagar in June. A bench of justices Yashwant Varma and Shalinder Kaur has listed the matter for further hearing on November 28.

The high court has earlier ruled that "fire safety is a must" and all coaching centres must either comply with their statutory requirements under the Delhi Master Plan, 2021, and other applicable regulations or face closure.

In a status report filed in the matter, Delhi Police had informed that of the 583 coaching institutes running in the national capital, only 67 have no-objection certificates (NOC) from the Delhi Fire Services, added PTI.

Delhi Fire Services, in its status report, has said it conducted a survey of 461 coaching centres and found that the requisite fire preventive and safety measures, according to the Delhi Fire Service Act and its rules, had not been adopted.

Taking note of a news report that showed students of the institute smashing windows and climbing down ropes in a desperate attempt to escape, the high court asked the local authorities to file a status report.

A preliminary inquiry suggested that the fire started from an electricity meter board in the five-storey building, the officials said. According to the police, around 250 students were attending classes in the building at the time.