Delhi Gives Coaching Centres One Month to Comply with Safety Norms or Face Sealing
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta announced on Saturday that the Delhi government will introduce a new law to regulate all coaching centres in the capital, giving them a one-month deadline to comply with safety norms or face closure. The decision follows a recent fire at a coaching centre in Aliganj, Lucknow, which killed 15 people. In response, the government has ordered immediate safety inspections in major Delhi coaching hubs, including Mukherjee Nagar, Rajender Nagar, and Katwaria Sarai.
Speaking in a video message, Chief Minister Gupta warned that any coaching institute operating without mandatory fire audits, essential safety equipment, or proper security measures will be sealed. She emphasized that the safety of the students is the government's top priority, regardless of the number of institutes operating in the city.
"One month. There is a time period of one month. All the coaching institutes running in Delhi, be it 900 or 1000, the number doesn’t matter—what matters is the lives of the children studying there, their safety and security," Gupta said. She added that the new law is being formulated based on the findings of a High Court committee to ensure all centres are held to strict safety standards.
The Chief Minister also appealed to students to report unsafe conditions at their institutes via message, email, or phone call, promising that the government would take strict action, including sealing non-compliant centres.
Earlier in the week, Education Minister Ashish Sood ordered a citywide safety crackdown and chaired a high-level review meeting to assess safety standards. The meeting included officials from the Home Department, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Delhi Fire Service, Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), and the Directorate of Higher Education.
Sood directed the MCD, Delhi Development Authority (DDA), and fire and disaster management authorities to launch a special inspection campaign across major coaching hubs. The MCD, which previously surveyed 923 coaching centres across Delhi, has been directed to provide this list to inspection teams and submit a daily Action Taken Report to the Minister’s Office.
The Delhi government is currently preparing a robust regulatory framework to address systemic gaps and establish a transparent regulatory mechanism, with the draft framework expected to be submitted shortly.
