Don't send your kids to Delhi, say shattered families

The site of building collapse in Satya Niketan, Delhi : Families of victims in the Satya Niketan PG collapse are urging others not to send their children to Delhi, citing profound disappointment and safety concerns.

The collapse of the decades-old building resulted in seven deaths and several injuries, leading to the arrest of the building owner and his family.

One victim's family donated his eye, while another's son remains in critical condition with severe injuries, highlighting the devastating impact of the tragedy.

The incident has prompted questions about the negligence of authorities and the safety of dilapidated buildings housing students in the national capital.

The tragedy has shattered the dreams of families who sent their children to Delhi for better education, leaving them with a bitter memory of the city.

 

They sent their children to Delhi with dreams of a better education and a brighter future that their small towns could not offer.

But after a boys' hostel collapsed in Satya Niketan, the families of the victims are returning home with a bitter message for anyone still dreaming the same dream: Don't send your kids to Delhi.

The families of the students who died in the collapse had struggled to put them through college in the national capital.

Sunday's collapse of the decades-old building housing a boys' paying guest accommodation has not only claimed lives and shattered families but also left them questioning whether the city was worth the risk.

Devastating Impact on Families : For Bhupendra Jaj, who decided to donate his son Ankit's one eye after the other got damaged in the tragic incident, Delhi has been a profound disappointment.

"We have become completely disappointed. I just want to say to everyone, don't send your kids to Delhi," Bhupendra told.

The family of five had endured considerable hardship to provide Ankit with a good education, Jaj said. He recalled that shortly after the building collapsed, one of his son's friends called the family around 3 pm to ask about him and warned them not to let him return to the area if he was still in Dewas -- their hometown in Madhya Pradesh.

"We told him that he had already left for Delhi and had reached there in the morning. We had a lot of trouble just finding his body. Nobody was ready to tell us anything. They showed only two photographs to us when there were more bodies," Jaj said.

The family has demanded a thorough investigation into the collapse.

A Decision Amidst Loss : The tragedy also prompted the family to take a decision that has brought some meaning to their loss.

Doctors told them that one of Ankit's eyes had already been damaged in the collapse, while the other could still be donated.

"We decided at that time itself that we would donate his eye," Jaj said.

His grandfather, Makhanlal Jaj, said the authorities were of no help.

"This (collapse) is complete negligence of the authorities. All such dilapidated buildings should be vacated immediately. After reaching there, we had a hard time searching for him as the authorities did not help us at all," he said.

"All our hopes were pinned on him... Now what do we have left?" he said.

Another Family's Ordeal : For the family of 19-year-old Neeraj Bawa, a second-year Bachelor of Arts student of Motilal Nehru College, Delhi too was a choice made in pursuit of education.

A resident of Jammu, Bawa remains admitted to the intensive care unit of a hospital in critical condition. His lower body suffered severe injuries in the incident.

His cousin Ashok Kumar said the family learnt about the incident through news reports.

"His father, who has retired from the Army, was watching the news when reports of the building collapse came. At first, he did not pay heed, but slowly it struck him that Neeraj also lived in a PG in that area. After some time, we saw his photograph somewhere. We took a taxi and came here immediately," Kumar said.

The family had repeatedly asked Neeraj to study in Jammu, but he wanted to come to Delhi to attend a good college.

"Look what Delhi has done to him," Kumar said.

Bawa lost his mother around a decade ago and is the youngest of four siblings.

His father and three sisters have always been protective of him, Kumar said.

Aftermath and Arrests : His friend and fellow survivor, 19-year-old Nitish Chib, a second-year Bachelor of Commerce student at the same college, is recovering from injuries and is expected to be discharged soon.

Nitish's mother, Seema Chib, said her daughter, who had been considering coming to Delhi for studies, has now changed her mind.

"My daughter was thinking of coming to Delhi, but now she has dropped the plan," she said.

The over 27-hour rescue operation at the collapse site concluded on Monday evening after seven people were killed and several others rescued.

Police have arrested the building owner, 81-year-old Hariram, a retired Indian Air Force sergeant, his 75-year-old wife Urmila and their 52-year-old son Mahesh.

They have been booked on charges including culpable homicide, negligence in the upkeep of a structure and endangering the safety of others.

For the families, the questions run deeper than blame.

They had sent their children to Delhi convinced the city would offer opportunities their own towns never could.

Instead, they are taking their children home carrying a different memory of the national capital -- one marked not by possibility, but by a devastating failure of safety and trust.