"Choked Infrastructure, Sacrificed Lives"

When the aim gets fixed on a particular purview, leaving all entertaining stuff far behind, being a human demands a huge sacrifice. That's how today's career world has become. A big salute to those who take the courage to jump into battle and leave no stone unturned.

Image source: Pinterest 

"It was about 18:00, I was just scrolling my phone to get some frequent updates on happenings around the world. Took some money from my bag and went out to the library to refresh my mind. I then murmured; as there was no match between that Maggie and Maggie cooked by my mom. Missing her a lot then. My mood was off, though, yet I headed towards the library to continue reading geopolitics.

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I reached, I reached there and I was consciously comatose. It wasssssn't me, norrrr the place I had left a fewww minutes before! But my friends, my friendsssss, Alaaaass....sssss! They were trapped inside! The library in the basement area of our coaching centre was flooded with dirty water. The pressure of the water was so much that in minutes, their knees were submerged, and it became difficult to climb the stairs there. The signals were so weak that they couldn't even make calls; they just sat on top of tables and chairs for hours, slowly getting rescued. I can never forget how all of them were gasping for air! 

A few minutes later, some were rescued, and three dead bodies were taken out of the basement... .. .. .. . , I, shivering, shattering, unable to utter a word, broke down into pieces, as all three were my closest buddies." Said a 20-year-old girl.

Source : Sanchit Khanna (HT photos)

The country has been following a "take action when everything annihilates" strategy, resulting in an increase in such kind of havoc. Not only in the present, but the scenario has been the same for so long. Just as in January 2020, two roofs of a coaching centre collapsed in Delhi, killing 5 people and 13 injured; so too on June 15, 2023, a UPSC coaching centre in Delhi's Mukherjee Nagar caught fire, leaving 61 injured. 

Similarly, this year has faced huge miseries related to waterlogging. For instance, another aspirant died while crossing a waterlogged street after grabbing an iron gate near exposed wires for balance. However, not only the coaching institutes but also poor infrastructure has become a major cause for concern. Like, the recently inaugurated roof canopy of Delhi airport resulted in one fatality and multiple injuries, likewise, another roof collapse occurred at Jabalpur's Dumna Airport, which led to the damage of a parked government official's car. Also, another incident of waterlogging on the newly constructed Rampath in Ayodhya can be added to this list.

Source: BBC image

Actually the rainy season brings hurdles for man every year. But being practical, the season shouldn't be blamed. Rather, the system must be. Rigidity in the administration is lacking somewhere, I think.

CAUSES : 

The reasons are many, but failure in the management of proper drainage systems causes tragedies every year. There's not enough capacity for a drainage system to handle the excessive rainfall during heavy monsoon rains. Another reason for the incapability of drainage is their blocking due to the clogging of debris, sediments or other objects, which creates obstruction. Therefore drainage should be properly designed to accommodate the local area and rainfall patterns. For this, authorities responsible for the management of drainage should use plumbing items and pipes of well-reputed companies. 

Further, lack of maintenance is another issue for waterlogging; to prevent this, the formation of a supervising team is needed. Timely checking, repairing, and renovating with high-quality materials should be included in supervision. Also, a lack of proper coordination among the authorities becomes responsible, as it may cause gaps in coverage and reduce overall system efficiency.

Likewise, uneven topography in the terrain demands an appropriate slope to facilitate the smooth flow of water.

COACHING CENTRES, THE MASTER OF ONE'S OWN WILL :

Strict action against coaching centres has been started since the tragedy took place, any coaching's basements operating as illegal libraries are sealed. Not only in Delhi but strict action has already been taken by the authorities and state governments in most parts of the country. But the point is, those precious lives have already gone and nothing can be done except to give sincere condolences to their kins.

AN ESCAPE FROM THE UPCOMING HAVOC :

Sealing illegal libraries is okay, but aspirants suffer through many other issues as well. According to me, they are ~

• FSSAI's frequent supervision of stalls, and restaurants near coaching areas is necessary. They should make sure that the vegetables and products are of good quality and quite healthy to use. And whether the water used for drinking is good or not. (Refer: Ministry of Consumer Affairs' PDF on comparative test on packaged drinking water)

• Hostels or pan-guests should have sufficient space for the passage of air.

• Placing fire extinguishers at a considerable distance would also prevent big accidents.

• High voltage lines and other cables should be well-packed, also have a good enough altitude to prevent electric shock and checking on a regular basis must be made from the side of the electricity dept.

• Surveillance of buildings (whether coaching, libraries or any other area) before the arrival of monsoon is a preliminary task to be done. And those at risk of collapsing must be emptied and destroyed asap.

     Most importantly, though I'm diverting from the track, but the burden on aspirants aspiring for any competitive exam has been increasing day by day. So, here comes the necessity to increase the role of govt. For instance, fix the upper limit of fees to avoid the owner's ad-lib. Also, such unscrupulous institutes shouldn't have the right to retain fees of students who leave the course midway due to dissatisfaction. Another is that a day in a week in coaching institutes can be made reserved for entertaining purposes like playing games, group discussions along with gifts for winners, or any other idea that the majority likes/agrees to prevent stress, anxiety, depression and ultimately suicide.

Saving lives is our duty, so the time to repair the roof is when the sun is still shining. On the whole, to combat such tragedies during monsoons, present-day demands to invest in well-designed, maintained, properly functioning drainage systems and proper coordination among the authorities. This will prevent "one-day rain, loss of lives" in a repeated waterlogging hub, known as Delhi and in other parts of the country as well.

Source: thehinduimages.com

"Would that, I would've asked Shreya, Tanya and Delvin to go out and have Maggie with me, then they could have been alive today...........", she said, and wiped her tears off!

- Anshika Chaturvedi