At first glance, the devastating fire in Lucknow that claimed 15 lives on Monday and the despair of candidates denied entry at various NEET-UG test centres for being a few minutes late on Sunday may seem unrelated. Yet, they both speak of the country’s evolving educational architecture that seeks to profit off students’ aspirations while failing to protect them or treat them with kindness.
The Aliganj fire is a tragedy that resulted from both ills. A notice for demolition served for the building a decade ago was revoked soon after, allowing a coaching centre to be housed there. The special investigation team has now been constituted as a few other injured students battle for their lives in the hospital. The least that the families of those who paid the price of negligence would expect is a thorough probe that spares neither the private owners nor the public officials found responsible.
The day before the fire, more than 22 lakh students had to converge at NEET-UG test centres across the country because the authorities had not been able to ensure the integrity of the original test scheduled on May 3. Amid the extended anxiety for students and parents, heartbreaking images emerged of a father pleading for his disconsolate daughter to be let in at a centre in Madhya Pradesh’s Vidisha—as they had to endure unexpected hardships on the long way to the venue. Stringent entry protocols are indeed necessary to preserve an exam’s probity. But the system cannot be oblivious to the extraordinary pressure it exerts on youngsters and their families. A family of modest means may not be able to afford an overnight stay near a test centre. Many other exams across India and the world offer a few extra minutes to clock in.
The industry built on a young country’s aspirations must make extra efforts to ensure its duty of care. After the Supreme Court issued strict guidelines in 2024 to ensure safety at coaching centres, the authorities made a few attempts to crack down on the largely unregulated industry. But as incidents like the one in Lucknow show, it has not brought about the mindset shift required among all three levels of government. Education is a custodianship that needs to be ring-fenced from crude commercialism and administrative apathy. At stake is the very future of the country.
