NEW DELHI: Nearly a month after three students drowned in the flooded basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle in Old Rajendra Nagar, coaching centres and other related businesses are considering relocating from the area.
The MCD has sealed the basements of at least 20 coaching centres in Rajendra Nagar and Mukherjee Nagar -- major coaching hubs in northwest Delhi. Drishti IAS, a major coaching institute whose basements were also sealed in the drive, recently announced its decision to shift to Noida.
According to Pranav Dwivedi, a representative of Lukmaan coaching in Rajendra Nagar, these sealings have created a negative sentiment in the industry, prompting most institutes to look for options elsewhere.
“The number of students who are attending classes physically has drastically reduced as online classes are preferred. We will have to move to places like Noida to survive in the business,” he said. Many students opt for online classes due to the closure of libraries, mostly located in basements. “The PG accommodations are extremely small and congested, so relied on libraries to study.
Now, the ones that remain have increased their prices significantly,” said Aman Chakravarty, a student in Rajinder Nagar. Students who prefer physical classes are also in a bind. Farhan Akhtar, who had registered himself in the Chahal Academy in Rajender Nagar, said,
“In the first week of August, I had got myself registered and was told that the offline classes will start next week. I spoke to a couple of students who were confused paying the fee as many were not convinced if the offline classes would begin.
Sadly, there are no convincing messages even now.” However, transitioning away from established coaching hubs won’t be easy. “Supporting businesses like student accommodation, libraries, eateries and Xerox shops will have to move as well. Faculty members also have to be willing to move.