Tragedy of India's Students: Caught Between a Failing Education System and Cruel Coaching Industry
Sanbeer Singh Ranhtora | 31 July 2024 | News18
India’s students are in dire straits. We have now reached a point as a nation where our students need to be saved from a host of challenges. The unfortunate death of three young students in Delhi’s Rajinder Nagar has brought the nation’s focus to the plight students face. These were three bright students preparing to crack the “coveted" UPSC examination. Before they could realise their dream, they drowned in the library of a coaching institute, which was located in the building’s basement – illegally so.
What this tragedy highlights are the threats posed to students by India’s parallel education system – the coaching industry. While there is no discounting the culpability of municipal and local authorities – who have constantly failed to ensure coaching centres adhere to rules and regulations – the deaths should pave the way for structural reform in India’s education sector. After all, how does the drowning of civil service aspirants in drain water and deluge reflect on the nation as a whole? Rest assured, it does not paint a rosy picture for either our present or the future…