Huge Protests After 3 UPSC Aspirants Drown In Rau's IAS Basement In Delhi

New Delhi: In what seems to be a clear case of death by negligence, three civil services aspirants drowned in Rau's IAS basement - a popular coaching centre in Central Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar - after it got flooded with drain water. Old Rajinder Nagar is an area dominated by coaching centres where aspirants and students from across India come with hope. The tragic incident led to a mass outrage prompting hundreds of students to come out to stage protest and seek justice. 

Among those, who died included two females and one male, the bodies of whom have been fished out from the water-filled basement of the coaching centre and have been sent for post-mortem. The police have also registered a case and initiated a probe.

The official sources stated that the incident took place after heavy rainfall on Saturday evening led to a drain burst nearby, leaving the basement of the coaching centre filled with drain water. On information, the police teams from Central Delhi, the fire department officials, the district administration and the NDRF teams rushed to the spot and efforts were initiated to rescue the missing students.

According to the sources, information was received about the flooding of the basement of an institute, wherein three students were reportedly missing. Immediately, the officials of the concerned authorities rushed to the spot and efforts were initiated to trace the missing students. During the rescue operation, the bodies of the three missing students were retrieved one after the other during the hours-long search operation. 

Three Bodies Recovered

Preliminary reports suggested that two female students and one male student, who were attending the coaching classes, went missing after the basement of the centre suddenly flooded. It is being said that over 35 students were taking coaching classes during the incident, out of which a maximum of students managed to escape from the basement. A rescue operation was launched, during which the body of all the missing students was fished out and shifted to a mortuary.

The Delhi Fire Service, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and Delhi Police were on-site conducting further search and rescue operations. Even after the recovery of the third body, the authorities are thoroughly searching the basement of the coaching centre.

As per the officials from the Delhi Fire Service, the fire department received a distress call at around 7 pm, prompting an immediate response. Efforts to contact the missing students through their mobile numbers have been unsuccessful, as their phones are not reachable.

It is being said that the rescue operation was launched in Old Rajender Nagar in Central Delhi following reports of students trapped in a waterlogged basement at a coaching centre located on Bada Bazaar Marg. The rescue team informed that the basement was heavily flooded and had very poor visibility, making the search efforts challenging for the divers.

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj and MCD Mayor Shelly Oberoi also reached the site to inspect the rescue operations.

Delhi Police Launches Probe

Earlier, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Delhi) M Harsha Vardhan said, "At 7 pm, we received information that the basement of a USPC coaching institute in Rajendra Nagar has been flooded with a possibility of some people trapped. There was waterlogging on the road due to heavy rains this evening. We are investigating the matter that how the entire basement got flooded. It appears that the basement got flooded very fast and some people got trapped inside the basement. Delhi Fire Service and NDRF rescue teams are present here. Search and rescue operations are underway."

The fire department has deployed four motor pumps to extract the water. A total of five fire tenders have reached the site to assist in the rescue operation.

Further details regarding the incident are being awaited.

Magistrate Inquiry Ordered

Meanwhile, after the drowning incident of an IAS aspirant, Delhi Minister Atishi said that a magistrate inquiry has been ordered into the incident.

Atishi took to X, saying, “There is news of an accident due to heavy rain in Delhi in the evening. There is news of water filling in the basement of a coaching institute in Rajendra Nagar. Delhi Fire Department and NDRF are on the spot. Delhi Mayor and local MLA are also there. I am taking updates on the incident every minute. A magistrate has been ordered to investigate how this incident happened. Whoever is responsible for this incident will not be spared.”

Students Stage Massive Protest

After the death of the IAS aspirants, the other students staged a massive protest over the death of the two civil services aspirants. The protesters demanded stingent action against those responsible for the incident, which led to the flooding of the basement of a building housing a coaching centre in Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar area.