New Delhi: In view of the horrific incident of a building collapsing in Satya Niketan in which at least seven people died, Supreme Court Tuesday agreed to examine a plea seeking safety audit of all PG accommodations, private hostels and student-accommodation establishments situated in and around colleges and universities across Delhi.
“The inspection of the aforesaid areas was completed on Sept 3.
Taking on record the report filed by senior advocate and court-appointed amicus curiae Ajit Kumar Sinha on building collapse, a bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and R Mahadevan said that it will hear the plea Thursday. This is a serious issue,” the bench said. Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, told the bench that Delhi High Court had passed the order on a PIL on building collapse and the authorities were making an all-out effort to rescue the students. The report said the order of the court was confined to three markets and Satya Niketan did not fall within the scope of the inspection directed by this court. During the course of the said inspection, the Committee is stated to have found certain buildings situated in Said-ul-Ajaib, Saket and Lajpat Nagar to be in a precarious and unsafe condition. The report of the Committee is presently under preparation and is expected to be placed before this Court shortly,” it said.
“We have something in mind. “In these circumstances, it would be appropriate that the inspection exercise be extended beyond the areas presently identified by this Court and that the concerned authorities undertake a time-bound inspection and safety audit of PG accommodations, private hostels and similar student-accommodation establishments situated in and around colleges and universities across Delhi. The apex court in July constituted a committee comprising two senior professors from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi on the civil side, along with two draftsmen from the same Institute, who shall be accompanied by the officials of the MCD and a representative of the amicus curiae to conduct an actual ground survey of Lajpat Nagar, Malviya Nagar and Saket in Delhi.
We will consider this issue day-after-tomorrow.