'Sealed illegal basements demolished encroachment over drains ' says MCD Commissioner

     New Delhi, Jul 29 (PTI) The MCD has initiated a three-pronged action in the aftermath of the Old Rajinder Nagar coaching centre deaths, including sealing of illegally run basements and demolition of encroachment done on stormwater drains, the civic body's commissioner Ashwani Kumar said on Monday.
     Speaking to reporters, he said the issue of illegally run coaching centres with poor security measures is faced across the national capital and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) will crack down on such institutes through its sealing drive.
     Expressing grief over the deaths of the three IAS aspirants in Old Rajinder Nagar, Kumar said, "It is a very unfortunate incident. We have worked on two-three fronts in this matter."
     "Firstly, we have demolished the encroachment on the stormwater drains built on both sides of the road that was completely covered by people which led to waterlogging and even made it difficult to de-silt the drains. We have also carried out an anti-encroachment drive to demolish illegal structures and recover these drains in the area."
     "Secondly, we have stepped up sealing of basements of coaching institutes illegally operating and posing threat to the safety and security of students. The sealing drive will be carried out in other areas as well where such institutes are operating."
     "Thirdly, we have taken action against the engineers of the maintenance department responsible for containing the waterlogging. The junior engineer of the of the Karol Bagh zone, where the incident took place, has been terminated and the assistant engineer suspended," Kumar said.
     "A show cause notice has also been issued to the executive engineer seeking explanation on why timely action was not taken to contain the waterlogging," he said.
     Kumar gave the statement before attending an emergency meeting of officials called by Mayor Shelly Oberoi to take update on the situation.
     "The coaching centres are not only being illegally run from basement in that particular area (Old Rajinder Nagar). We have got to know, such establishments are operating in many other parts of the city. In these areas, the basement are either completely illegal or being misused to run coaching centres," he said calling the incident an "enforcement issue".
     The MCD carries out de-silting of the drains through both outsourcing and in-house sanitation workers. In the case of Old Rajinder Nagar case, the stormwater drain which is used to carry way excess water during heavy rains, was completely encroached, he said, adding that "it is a big issue faced across Delhi making cleaning of drains difficult."
     Kumar further said that there is a need to set up a dedicated space in the city for coaching centres where these institutes can run formally with all due safety measures to curb illegal setups.
     "In Delhi there is a huge requirement for coaching. People from different states come to study here. Therefore, there is a need for a dedicated space where people can open coaching centres formally with all due security measures and arrangements. This would curb the illegal basements problem," he said.
     This was the commissioner's first media interaction after three IAS aspirants died due to flooding of the Rau's IAS Study Circle building basement in the central Delhi coaching hub of Old Rajinder Nagar following heavy rain last week.
     Police have arrested seven people in this connection so far and 20 basements of coaching centres in Old Rajinder Nagar and Mukherjee Nagar have been sealed by the agency.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)