Delhi Basement Tragedy: Tanya's Lifelong Dream of Becoming a Civil Servant Cut Short

New Delhi: Tanya Soni, one of the three UPSC aspirants who lost their lives in a rain-induced flood in a Delhi coaching centre, had nurtured a dream of becoming a civil servant since childhood.

Her father, Vijay Kumar, shared with news agency PTI the heart-wrenching details of his daughter's loss. While talking to PTI, Kumar said, Tanya had been diligently preparing for the UPSC exams at the centre for the past month, following her graduation in BA Political Science from a college in Delhi.

"From a young age, Tanya was deeply passionate about cracking the UPSC exams," Vijay Kumar recounted, his voice heavy with grief as he made the sorrowful journey to bring his daughter's body back to their native Bihar.

The devastating news came while the family was en route to Lucknow by train. “When we heard about Tanya’s death, we immediately disembarked in Nagpur and flew to Delhi,” Kumar said, reflecting the agony of a family thrust into unimaginable pain.

With a deep sense of loss, Kumar explained that Tanya's body has now been handed over to the family, who are traveling to Bihar for her final rites. Kumar, who has dedicated 25 years to working with the state-run Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) in Telangana and is currently a Deputy General Manager, faces this immense personal tragedy while his family resides in Mancherial.

The heartbreaking incident occurred when Tanya, along with two other aspirants, was trapped in the library located in the basement of Rau's IAS Study Circle. The basement was inundated due to a sudden downpour in Delhi on Saturday evening.

In the wake of this tragedy, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy have expressed their condolences, mourning the loss of a young life filled with promise and potential.