NEW DELHI: Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the city authorities to close down all coaching centres operating without a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the fire services department.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma observed that “fire safety is a must” and all coaching centres are under an obligation to comply with their statutory requirements under the Delhi Master Plan, 2021, and other applicable regulations.
The HC was hearing a batch of petitions concerning the operations of coaching centres in Mukherjee Nagar, a coaching hub for job aspirants. The petitions included proceedings initiated by the high court on its own after taking suo motu cognisance of a fire that broke out at a coaching centre in Mukherjee Nagar in June.
In a status report filed in the matter, the Delhi Police informed the court that of the 583 coaching institutes running in the national capital, only 67 have NOCs from the Delhi Fire Services. “If a coaching centre is not conforming with the master plan provisions, it is to be shut down. There is no other alternative,” the bench said.