10 coaching centres in Gautam Buddh Nagar directed to shut down

The Gautam Budh Nagar District Inspector of Schools (Dios) has directed 10 coaching centres in the district to shut down with immediate effect after they failed to produce their registration documents or No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the fire department, officials aware of the matter said on Thursday.

According to Dios Dharmveer Singh, the action comes after a coaching institute in Delhi caught fire on June 15, in which several students were injured.

“The incident was a threat to the life of students studying at coaching centres. Following this, 54 coaching centres were served a notice by our office, asking them to produce documents proving that they are running the centres after prior registration with Dios and that they have NOCs from the fire department. The last day for submission was June 21,” said Singh.

However, until June 21, several coaching centres did not reply to the notice.

“At least 10 coaching centres have failed to reply to the notice, which makes it clear that they are running without proper security arrangements or a firefighting system. These centres have not replied or given an explanation. Therefore, they are directed to shut down with immediate effect, otherwise legal action would be taken against them as per rules,” the directive said.

In 2019, following a major fire at a coaching centre in Surat, Gujarat, where 22 students died, the Gautam Buddh Nagar fire department had sealed four coaching centres in the district. The action was taken after inspections found that these centres were flouting fire norms.