In the backdrop of the tragic drowning of three IAS aspirants at a coaching centre in Delhi recently, and amid rising cases of student suicides, Tehelka SIT report exposes how these institutes make a mockery of government guidelines intended to ensure students’ safety and well-being
“Coaching centres have become “death chambers” and are playing with the lives of students,” the Supreme Court said as it issued notices to the Centre and the Delhi government regarding the drowning incident involving three IAS aspirants in the basement of a coaching institute in Old Rajinder Nagar, Delhi. Taking suo motu cognizance of the matter, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan said the incident was an eye-opener for all. “This is horrible, what we are reading. If need be, we will even close down these coaching centres. For the time being, the coaching should go online, unless there is meticulous compliance with building regulations and other safety norms. These places [coaching centres] have become death chambers. Coaching centres are playing with the lives of these aspirants who come from different parts of the country with dreams, and are working hard,” the bench said.
“The government officers come for surprise checks around 11 am, 12:30 or a maximum by 1:30 pm. After that, they don’t come for checking. So, I would admit minor students below 16 years of age to my coaching centre and would conduct their classes at 3 pm, the time at which no government officer comes for checking. One day, a few government officials came to my coaching centre for inspection, but I bribed them to pre-empt any action against my centre,” said Prashant [goes by his first name], an owner of multiple coaching centres named Eklavya in Delhi-NCR, to Tehelka’s undercover reporter.
The reporter met Prashant in Sector 15, Noida’s branch of Eklavya, on the pretext of admitting his friend’s children, who are below 16 years of age, for NEET preparation. Prashant agreed to admit them, in violation of the Ministry of Education guidelines, which prohibit the intake of students below 16 years in any coaching institute across India. The guidelines were issued in January this year following complaints about rising cases of student suicides, fire incidents, lack of facilities in coaching centres, and the methodologies of teaching adopted by them.
As per the central government guidelines, coaching centres cannot enroll students below 16 years of age, make misleading promises, or guarantee ranks or good marks. The guidelines for regulating coaching institutes were framed to address the need for a legal framework and manage the unregulated growth of private coaching centres. After these guidelines, Tehelka carried out an investigation to see how many coaching centres are following government guidelines. To our surprise, none of the coaching centres we contacted during this investigation bothered to follow government guidelines. Almost all of them are blatantly flouting government norms.
Prashant not only violated government guidelines but even described how he dodged authorities during the COVID-19 lockdown by making his coaching centre operational clandestinely. “During the COVID-19 lockdown, I was clandestinely running my coaching centre. I posted one man at the gate to inform me if a policeman came. I used to switch off all the lights of my centre to mislead authorities into thinking my coaching centre was shut. But I was taking all the classes at my centre. I asked students to come with a copy and pen, and not with a bag. This way, I managed to hoodwink the authorities during the lockdown,” said Prashant while talking to our reporter.
The tragic incident at a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar, New Delhi, where three UPSC aspirants were killed due to flooding, could have been averted if the authorities in charge had been vigilant about the safety violations committed by many coaching centres across the city. After the incident, there are reports that many unregulated coaching institutes in Noida and Gurugram are under scrutiny. It is learnt that over 300 coaching centres in Gurugram are operating without the mandatory no-objection certificate (NOC) from the fire department.
To expose how coaching centres are violating government guidelines, we met Prashant at his Eklavya coaching centre in Sector 15, Noida. We proposed a fictitious deal to him that our friend’s children, who are below 16 years of age, wanted to enroll at his coaching centre for NEET preparation. Prashant agreed to enroll the children, in a clear violation of the government guidelines that no coaching centre can enroll children below 16 years of age.
Reporter- Theek hai kyunki unko thoda ye tha ke guidelines aayi hain na..
Prashant- Kitne students hain?
Reporter- Kam se kam 8-10 mil jayenge..
Prashant- Le aaiye.. visit kara dijiye..
Reporter- Dikha deta hoon bacchon ko bhi.. parents ko bhi, hain sab 14-15 saal ke..
Prashant- Kaho to mein apne teachers se kahun counseling kar aaye..aise koi jagah hai jahan saare parents beth jaaye..?
Reporter- Nahi aisi to nahi hai..kaho to park mein.?
Prashant- Haan park bhi chalega.. hum khade hokar speech de saktey hain..
Reporter- Thoda sa wo yahi soch rahe they.. jab se sarkar ki guidelines aayi hain na.. 16 saal se kam age ke coaching centre mein admission nahi le saktey..kahin aisa na ho dikkat pareshani ho jaaye..ye hai..
Prashant- Teen baje ke baad hum kar saktey hain.. aap unko bata dijiye, aware kar dijiye..
Reporter- Confirm kar doon ?
Prashant- Ek dum..kar dijiye sir..
[Our sting operation reveals how coaching centres are violating government guidelines by enrolling underage students. Despite clear rules, Prashant from Eklavya coaching centre agrees to admit children under 16. This exposes the disregard for regulations, highlighting the need for stricter enforcement.]
After Prashant agreed to enroll children below 16 years of age, he shared with our reporter his plan for managing those students at his centre. He mentioned that government officials typically conduct surprise visits before 2 p.m. So to avoid detection, he would schedule these classes at 3 p.m.
Reporter- Accha hamarey society mein kai bacche hain jinko NEET aur JEE ki coaching chahiye.. par hain wo 9th mein age hain unki kam, 15 saal se 9th ke hain..16 saal se kam, to kaise karoge phir aap..?
Prashant- Ek baar pooch leta hoon XXXXXX sir se..
Reporter- XXXXXX kaun ?
Prashant- XXXXX sir authority mein XXXXX hain…wo keh rahe they aisa hoga to mere ko batana..baat kar lunga.. yahan Noida authority mein hain..ho sakta hai..
Reporter- Theek.
Prashant- School se baccha kai baje aata hai..?
Reporter- School se aata hai 1-1.30 pm.
Prashant- To hum 3 baje ke baad hi class kar sakte hain..
Reporter- Theek hai.. 3 pm ke baad rakh lenge..
Prashant- Rakh lenge..kyunki 3 baje tak generally saare officers ghoom kar chale jaatey hain..visit jo hoti hain na officer ki wo 11 baje, 12 baje, mostly zyada se zyada 1.30 pm se pehle..
Reporter- Accha…Iska matlab sham ko nahi aatey, sham ko koi darr nahi hai..?
Prashant – Darr nahi hai.
Reporter – Ok sham ko rakhtey hain.. 3 baje ke baad.
Prashant- Done sir..
Reporter- Final karun?
Prashant- Haan sir.
[Prashant reveals plans to bypass government inspections by scheduling classes for underage students after 3 p.m., when officials typically finish their visits. This highlights a systematic effort to flout regulations, emphasizing the need for stricter enforcement.]
Prashant mentioned that one of his classrooms remains empty after 4 p.m., prompting the reporter to ask about the officials responsible for inspecting the premises.He explained that these inspections are conducted by officials from the Basic Education Office (BO), who act on orders from the District Education Officer (DO).
Prashant- Aur mera ek room khali bhi rehta hai abhi.. 4 baje se poori class khali hai..
Reporter- Ye check karne wale kahan se aatey hain..?
Prashant- Sir ye BO se aatey hain..
Reporter- BO matlab ?
Prashant- Basic Education officer..ye block level par hota hai.. aur DO usko order deta hai.. District Education Officer..DO
[As Prashant explains that these checks are conducted by the Basic Education Officer (BO) at the block level, the conversation highlights that while the oversight mechanisms are in place, there is a question mark over their effectiveness.]
Prashant now admitted to our reporter the extent to which he manipulates the system to keep his illicit activities under wraps. He recounted a particularly instance where he bribed government officials during a surprise inspection at his coaching centre, concealing the fact that he was instructing students under the age of 16. He revealed how he had identified officials posing as parents during the surprise inspection, and how he had managed the situation by withholding information and later bribing the Basic Education Officer (BSO).
Reporter- Wo aa chuke hain yahan aapke institution mein?
Prashant- Haan ek baar aaye they BO aur 2 police officers..
Reporter- Aajkal bachon ko dekhkar age hi pata nahi chalti, baccho ki physique hi aisi hai..sab bacchey nahi lagte..
Prashant- Jab aaye to mujhe bataya nahi, jaise aap kaise parents banke aaye ho, parents hi ho…hahaha..wo parents banke aaye they.
Prashant (continues)- Haan asal mein teeno bande, ek yahan baithey aur do yahan sofe par..acha baad mein bataya mein basic education ka adhikari hoon…bahut baad mein bataya, poora jayza le liya mere se..wo to acha hua maine bataya nahi mein padahta bhi hoon school ke.. ye 9th -10th ke bacchon ko..
Reporter- Aapne nahi bataya ?
Prashant- Haan nahi bataya..
Prashant (continues) – Boley aap padhatey ho..maine kahan nahi sir..phir bole aap registration dikhaiye, maine bola as a parent aap registration kaise dekh saktey ho, aap mere website par jao. Sara usmein diya hua hai aap dekho sir.
Prashant (continues) – Unho nein kaha accha bataiye aapne MCR mein register karaya hai…?
Prashant (continues) – Maine kaha maine local authority mein karaya hua hai, aur MCR ke liye file diya hua hai sir.
Prashant (continues) – Wahan bhi sir ho jayegi.. maine CA se baat kar li hai. Bole local authority mein karaya hai. Maine kaha karaya hai sir. Maine kahan local authority to chodo maine Bharat sarkar ka Ati Suksham Laghu Udyog hota hai.. usmein bhi karaya hai. Boley acha dikhaiye uski copy. Drawer khola nikala dikha diya.
Prashant (continues) – Accha course ka kuch pooch hi nahi raha hai, jaise aap pooch rahe ho, mein bhi sochu banda course nahi pooch raha hai, ool julool pooch raha hai.
Prashant (continues) – Ye nahi karaya wo, nahi.. idhar udhar ka pooch raha hai.
Reporter (continues) – Aapko doubt nahi hua ?
Prashant (continues) – Mere ko doubt hua.
Reporter- Ye bhi to paise ugai ke sadhan hai..?
Prashant – Phir doubt tab hua jab doosra jo hai na coaching wala, Career Launcher, uska phone aaya mere pass. Aise hai, hum log ki coaching ki ek team hai, meeting hoti hai na hamari Saturday-Sunday ko, ya to saptah mein ek din.. ya 15 din mein. Hum log aapas mein miltey hain ek jagah coaching sanchalak hotey hain.
Prashant (continues) – Unka phone aaya, Prashant sir, wo check karne wala aapke yahan aaya kya, maine poocha kaun.. kitne bande hain, ke sir teen bande hain, do sir principal aur ek sir check shirt mein, peela peela shirt mein wo hain BSO sahab. Wahi they.
Prashant (continues) – Maine kahan sir BSO Sahab, aapko jo jo poochana hai direct poocho…mein sir pehchan gaya aapko.
Reporter- Ab to chehra pehchan gaye aap, ab to aa hi nahi sakta koi.
Prashant- Maine kaha aapko maine pehchan liya ab batao kya logey.. chai-coffee.
Prashant (continues) – Wo sir kuch nahi mein baat kar lunga, usko sir paisa bhi to diya tha
Reporter- Kisko diya ?
Prashant- BSO ko, kuch de diya maine manage karne ko.
Reporter- Maine yahi to bola aapko ye sadhan hain paisa ugai ke…
Prashant- Haan!
[Prashant’saccount sheds light on the covert measures he employs to maintain the facade of legitimacy while circumventing regulations designed to protect young learners. Regarding the inspection conducted at his coaching centre, it seemssuch surveys sometimes serve as a pretext for some officials to extract bribes]
Prashant further threw some light on the tactics he used to prevent government officials from discovering students below 16 years of age at his center during surprise visits. For example, he mentioned conducting classes in the last cabin, a location that inspection teams rarely reach.
Reporter- 9th 10th ki classes aap kaise karate ho ?
Prashant- Classes sir ander hoti hain, last cabin mein, agar 9th ka baccha hoga uska class alag lunga, 10th ka hoga uska alag lunga, ek saath merge nahi kiya jayega..
Reporter- Haan to 9th 10th ki age hogi 15-16 saal.
Prashant- Haan usko alag alag class mein karwaiyenge.
Reporter- To aap 9th aur 10th ki yahi karatey hain class
Prashant- Haan ander hai.. thora theek rahega…
[Prashant explains that he conducts separate classes for 9th and 10th-grade students in the last cabin of his centre to avoid detection during inspections. He emphasizes keeping the students in different classes to minimize risk. The conversation reveals the deliberate measures Prashant takes to conceal his illegal activities, such as isolating underage students.]
While revealing how he violates government guidelines by enrolling students below 16 years of age, Prashant also bragged how he had also flouted regulations during the COVID-19 lockdown. He recounted how he conducted classes at his center with the lights off and stationing someone at the gate to warn him in advance of any police arrival.
Prashant- Corona mein 3 baar check karne aaya ..mein dheeth hoon ander se band karke padha raha tha bacchon ko..
Reporter- Corona mein ?
Prashant- Ji sir.. wo bade wala room mein..matlab yahan par sab light off kar diye..ek office boy ladka gate per rakh diya maine..maine bola siren bajta dekhe to mujhe bolna aakar..
Prashant- Mein baccho ko bolta tha, ek copy lekar aana, koi bag wag nahi…copy baccha lata tha, ladke bhi ladkiyan bhi, khali ek copy..wo bhi chupa ke shaq na ho…
[Prashant’s admission to holding secret classes during the COVID-19 lockdown with lights off reflects his determination to continue operations despite the restrictions besides his blatant disregard for government regulations.]
Now, Prashant sheds light on the immense pressure placed on students in Kota, a city known for its intense coaching culture. He explains how long and grueling hours of study, combined with high expectations from both parents and teachers, create a mentally taxing environment for students. This, he suggests, can push students to the brink, leading to severe stress and, in some cases, even suicide. Prashant also touches on the importance of offering personal mentorship to help students navigate this challenging landscape.
Reporter- Kota mein itna dabav kyun bana detey hain baccho par..
Prashant- Sir 4 ghantey kaun class leta hain, lagataar 4-4.30 ghante.. 4 ghanta 5 ghanta, parents ka uper se bhi dabav rehta hai..is baar test mein acche number nahi laya na, main bataunga abhi..aur teacher bhi dabav mein..teacher isliye dabav karta hai, teacher ko result chahiye..baccho par mentally pressure aa jata hai..suicide karega.. kya kare..?
Prashant (continues)- Ab mein is ladki ko baar baar bolun arey tu fail hogi, fail hogi….mein isliye betha hoon kya, mein to kahunga na aap acha karogey, bahut accha karogey, is tarah se bolunga .. is liye hum apne book mein likhtey hain personal mentorship..personal level par bhi guidance detey rehte hain..
[As Prashant discusses the intense pressure on students in Kota, it emerges that both the concealment of illegal activities and the extreme academic pressure contribute to atmosphere of fear and anxiety among students at the coaching centres.]
Prashant then quoted the rates for providing coaching to minors, initially demanding Rs 82,000 for one year of NEET coaching. After some negotiation, he reduced the price to Rs 71,500, offering a discount to secure the enrollment. The conversation also reveals Prashant’s careful coordination with his faculty, who work on a percentage basis, and his reassurance that there would be no issues with scheduling the classes.
Reporter- Charges kitna hoga sir..?
Prashant- Charge… sir ek baar mein baat kar leta hoon apne faculty se kyunki wo percentage base par hamare yahan kaam kartey hain..
Reporter- Phir bhi.. ek idea tentative?
Prashant-Sir 2 minute ka samay dijiye pooch leta hoon…..sir baccha 9th se, 10th mein jayega..?
Reporter- Haan sir..
Prashant- Ismein sir ye hi hai…82 thousand letey hain…82K per year..
Reporter- Accha 82K..iski zyada hai..?
Prashant- Bata raha hoon kaise zyada hai.. aur abhi sir hum uska le lenge 71, 500 mein..discount de rahe hain..
Reporter- To 72k mein bol doon.?
Prashant- Haan yearly.. Rs 71,500 uper neeche hum dekh lenge..
Reporter- Done kar doon phir?
Prashant- Haan kar dijiye….dekh lenge abhi chemistry wale ko bhi bula lenge..physics wale ki class chal rahi hai.
Reporter- Aapke coaching centre mein koi dikkat to nahi hogi?
Prashant – Nahi koi dikkat nahi hai..
Prashant – 3.30 pm baje ke baad kabhi bhi usko le saktey hain..
[As Prashant discusses the pricing for NEET coaching, it becomes clear that he is willing to negotiate prices and accommodate the student’s schedule.]
It is learnt that 15 students preparing for NEET-JEE have died by suicide in Kota this year alone, while the city saw 27 such deaths last year. Authorities are working to address the mental health issues arising from the high-pressure environment of coaching centers.
On July 27, three students allegedly died and several others were trapped when a nearby drain burst, leading to flooding in the basement of a coaching institute for UPSC aspirants in Old Rajinder Nagar, Delhi. Reacting to the shocking incident, students protested and raised slogans outside the coaching centre, demanding accountability for the fatalities.
In an effort to regulate coaching centers nationwide, the Ministry of Education had introduced guidelines in January this year prohibiting the enrollment of students below 16 years of age. However, our investigation has exposed how coaching centres flagrantly violate these guidelines, even in the capital, Delhi. This raises concerns about the situation in cities like Kota, located over 500 kilometers away.
The tragic deaths in Old Rajinder Nagar and the ongoing reports of suicides in Kota have garnered national media attention. Despite the government’s introduction of regulations aimed at addressing these issues and imposing restrictions on coaching centers, the latter seem to have turned a blind eye, while authorities appear reluctant to enforce the guidelines with a firm hand.
The Supreme Court has described these coaching centres as “death chambers” endangering students’ lives. Will Tehelka’s investigation galvanize the government to enforce stricter actions against these centers for not adhering to the guidelines? Only time will tell.
