Satya Niketan Building Tragedy: DU Students Vacate PGs Amid Safety and Inspection Concerns

Rescue operations have ended at the site of the five-storey PG building collapse in Delhi’s Satya Niketan, with the toll rising to seven. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta ordered administrative action, following which five MCD officials, including a deputy commissioner, were suspended. Police also arrested the building’s owner, Hariram Gupta, his wife Urmila and their son Mahesh. The Delhi High Court, meanwhile, sought a high-level investigation into possible lapses by civic authorities and the university. Student representatives from the ABVP and NSUI flagged poor infrastructure, fire-safety violations, illegal alterations and steep rents at private accommodations. They said Delhi University has only around 7,000 hostel seats for nearly seven lakh students. Separately, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told a defence conclave that the armed forces would deliver a decisive response to cross-border terrorism.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has ordered structural audits of all paying guest accommodations operational across the national capital. The audit will place special focus on prominent student hubs, including Mukherjee Nagar, Old Rajendra Nagar, Laxmi Nagar, Satya Niketan, and Saket. While orders have been issued to inspect all existing PG facilities across the city, questions remain over whether the move will deliver tangible results, noting that similar audits have been ordered in the past.

Himachal Pradesh is facing a severe shortage of teachers across its government primary schools. The issue was raised in the state assembly, where it was revealed that 12 primary schools in the Pachhad constituency are operating without any teachers. An India Today ground report found that in Kullu district, 314 primary schools are functioning with just one teacher each. At Banogi Primary School, a single teacher has been managing the entire school for two years. In response to the crisis, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has assured that the state government is expediting recruitment processes to address the shortage, even as students in rural areas continue to wait for adequate teaching staff.

Ayushman Sharma, a student at PGDAV College and friend of Akshat who died in the Satya Niketan building collapse, recounted the events following the disaster. Sharma said, 'I feel very devastated.' He described rushing to the collapse site with senior students after learning of the incident to check on affected peers. After the college administration confirmed Akshat was among those trapped, Sharma searched for him with photographs at the site and subsequently visited the AIIMS Trauma Centre. Sharma stated that after waiting alongside Akshat's family, officials confirmed the student had succumbed to his injuries. Sharma also highlighted that when he arrived at the location around 4:00 PM, local residents and Delhi Police personnel were actively carrying out evacuation efforts, while specialized disaster response teams were not initially visible.