The Delhi High Court stated today, Tuesday, October 10 that coaching institutes in the city that do not meet the statutory requirements under the Delhi Master Plan, 2021 would have to close down since there can be no compromise on the matter of students' safety.
The high court stated that it is up to the authorities to determine whether or not the coaching centres are complying with norms when the counsel of a coaching centre association claimed that they were, PTI reports.
“There can be no compromise on the issue of safety of students,” a bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula said.
The court had been hearing a number of petitions concerning the management of coaching facilities in Mukherjee Nagar, a hub for government job coaching in New Delhi.
It is with regard to one of these petitions that the high court began proceedings on its own following notice of a fire incident in a community in northwest Delhi in June.
Additionally, the high court granted two separate impleadment requests submitted by Mukherjee Nagar residents and the Coaching Federation of India.
“They are impleaded as parties and are free to file a response in the matter. Coaching Federation of India is required to be heard as consequential orders are required to be passed in their capacity,” the court said.
Additionally, the federation filed a petition asking the high court to reconsider its July 25 judgement ordering the city authorities to shut down any coaching facilities functioning in the area without a no-objection certificate from the fire services department.
The high court ordered that copies of the review plea be sent to each party, who is then able to respond to it.
Additionally, it requested that the Station House Officer (SHO) of the Mukherjee Nagar police station, the state government, and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) submit status reports on the case within four weeks.
“Our order is very clear. If a coaching centre is not conforming to MPD 2021, it has to be shut down. It is for them (authorities) to see if you are compliant with MPD 2021, norms or not,” the bench said and listed the matter for further hearing on November 23.
The federation's counsel acknowledged during the hearing that student safety is of the utmost concern.
The Delhi government and the Delhi Fire Services were represented by standing counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi and attorney Arun Panwar.
Only 67 of the 583 coaching facilities operating in the city have received no-objection certificates (NOCs) from the Delhi Fire Services, according to a status report provided to the court by the Delhi Police.
The court had ordered the police, fire department, and other agencies to assist the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) with all logistical help necessary to comply with the decision within 30 days.
The Delhi government counsel had previously stated that the status reports revealed that more than 95% of coaching facilities lacked a fire safety certificate from the department, despite the fact that it is a statutory necessity.
In its status report, Delhi Fire Services stated that it conducted a study of 461 coaching facilities and discovered that the necessary fire prevention and safety measures required by the Delhi Fire Service Act and its rules had not been implemented.
The high court took cognizance of a fire occurrence the previous day at a coaching institute in Mukherjee Nagar on June 16.
Taking note of a news report depicting students of the institute shattering windows and descending down ropes in a frantic bid to flee, the high court requested status reports from local authorities.
