NEW DELHI: The Delhi government has constituted a high-powered committee to examine student accommodation and safety in the capital and recommend time-bound measures, the Delhi high court was informed on Friday during a hearing on the September 6 Satya Niketan building collapse.The committee has already decided to prepare a regulatory framework for paying guest (PG) accommodation and private student hostels in Delhi.The submission was made during the hearing of a matter concerning the building collapse in Satya Niketan, where a boys’ paying-guest accommodation near Delhi University’s South Campus had collapsed while repair work was underway, killing seven people, including five students, and injuring several others.A bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia was informed by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) that immediately after the September 6 incident, the matter was taken up at the highest executive level of the civic body.The MCD also informed the court that five officers across the entire supervisory chain of the corporation, including a deputy commissioner, had been suspended.Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Delhi government, MCD and Delhi Police, gave details of other steps taken by the authorities.The court also termed Delhi University’s affidavit “absolutely vague”. The varsity’s counsel assured the court that a better response would be filed.According to the MCD’s affidavit, the Delhi government constituted a magisterial inquiry into the collapse to examine issues including the validity of permissions, compliance with building bye-laws and the role of the concerned officials.The MCD said no sanctioned building plan had been approved for the property and that it had not been constructed pursuant to valid MCD permission.The civic body also said a time-bound survey and inspection of PG buildings identified across all 12 zones under its jurisdiction had been undertaken.Of 2,453 PG buildings surveyed, 2,342 were found to be visibly safe, 91 required minor repairs, 30 required major repairs and four were found to be in dangerous condition.“In addition to that, eight load-bearing structures above ground-plus three storeys and 77 framed structures above ground-plus four storeys are being separately identified for close monitoring as the same may be vulnerable,” it said.Cases involving any prima facie issue concerning immediate structural safety or danger to life are being prioritised for appropriate inspection and strict action in accordance with law, the MCD said in its affidavit.The Delhi government’s High-Powered Committee on student accommodation and safety was constituted through a September 10 order to examine issues relating to student accommodation and safety in Delhi and recommend appropriate, time-bound measures.“In its meeting held on September 15, the committee, among other decisions, resolved to prepare a regulatory framework for paying guest accommodations and private student hostels.It was decided that the Department of Training and Technical Education (DTTE) and the Department of Higher Education (DHE) shall jointly prepare a regulatory framework for PG accommodation and private student hostels,” it said.The committee also decided that the framework would be developed in consultation with the stakeholder agency or department and should take into account the experience of other states and Union Territories in regulating PG accommodations.The Delhi Police, in its reply, said six accused, including the owners of the collapsed Satya Niketan building, had failed to take adequate safety precautions during construction or repair work, creating a situation that endangered human lives and ultimately caused deaths.It said the building collapsed due to excessive structural load or weakening of the existing structure, endangering human life and resulting in casualties.The MCD affidavit was filed in a pending PIL by law student Aniket Kumar Gupta, seeking urgent medical care and rehabilitation of affected students, Rs 1 crore compensation for the families of the deceased and preservation of crucial evidence relating to the collapse.The court permitted retired IPS officer Kiran Bedi to address it in the matter and asked the parties to also supply her with the documents they would place on record.The court listed the matter for further hearing on October 14 and said that if the Delhi government’s High-Powered Committee meeting takes place in the meantime, its minutes should be placed on record.On September 7, the high court had ordered a high-level MCD inquiry into the building collapse and made it clear that the government could not evade responsibility.(With PTI inputs)
