A day after a fire at a coaching centre in Lucknow’s Aliganj killed 15 people, the Uttar Pradesh government began a statewide inspection of coaching institutes on Tuesday. Officials sealed more than 30 centres in Kanpur and took action against over 100 institutes across several cities for safety violations.
Joint teams inspected coaching centres in Lucknow, Kanpur, Prayagraj, Varanasi and other cities. The teams checked fire safety equipment, emergency exits, building approvals and valid registrations. In Kanpur’s Kakadeo area, more than 30 institutes were sealed after authorities found basements being used as classrooms.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered a mission-mode fire safety audit of coaching institutes, hospitals and other buildings. He said basements approved only for parking cannot be used for commercial activities. Adityanath also directed officials to reduce emergency response times.
A two-member Special Investigation Team visited the site of the fire and met injured victims at KGMU hospital. The team collected forensic samples to determine the cause of the blaze. Higher Education Minister Yogendra Upadhyay said district magistrates have been asked to survey all coaching institutes in their areas.
