Overview
- A fire in a three-storey Aliganj building that housed an animation training centre killed 15 people, mostly students, prompting the enforcement drives.
- Uttar Pradesh, Delhi-NCR and multiple states have launched coordinated audits that have sealed dozens to more than 100 coaching centres, hotels, libraries and other premises for lacking valid fire NOCs or operating illegally.
- Inspections repeatedly found specific hazards: expired or non-functional fire extinguishers and hydrants, blocked or locked emergency exits, illegal basement classrooms, overcrowding and buildings approved only for residential use being run commercially.
- Delhi has ordered safety checks of 923 coaching centres, mandated daily action-taken reports from agencies and instructed the police and fire services to act, while the Directorate of Higher Education is preparing formal rules for coaching institutes.
- Officials say the crackdown responds to a pattern of past tragedies and enforcement gaps, and it could lead to more closures, prosecutions and tighter oversight that will affect students, coaching operators and building owners in the coming weeks.