The recent collapse of the auditorium roof at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, Dwarka, on August 29, 2023, has raised several burning questions pertaining to the ignorance of college administrations and poor infrastructure management at DU colleges.
On Tuesday, the newly-built auditorium at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College in Dwarka witnessed a chunk of its ceiling collapsing, barely a few months after a similar infrastructure catastrophe occurred at Kamala Nehru College. However, sources have reported that no injuries were sustained since nobody was present in the auditorium at the time of the accident.
A part of the roof, the false-ceiling of the auditorium—all bricks and plaster—collapsed. The auditorium was closed after that, causing our annual orientation programme for freshers, Deekshaarambh which was to be conducted between 31st August and 2nd September to be postponed until further notice. The accident occurred exactly a day after an event related to the G-20 was conducted in the auditorium.
– Student at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College
The mishap has raised several eyebrows because of the award-winning infrastructure that the college houses. The college, which was shifted to a new campus in Dwarka in 2016 because of worsening infrastructure at its old campus in Karampura, has received the Vishwakarma Award 2017 for its state-of-the-art building. All the classrooms, lecture theatres, library, computer centre, cafeteria, and most of the laboratories are fully air-conditioned. The campus has rainwater harvesting, solar power generation, and a sewage treatment plant with a water recycling facility.
Despite such top-notch facilities, most students point out that the major reason behind the roof accident could be ‘poor maintenance’ by the college administration over the years since the college shifted to the new campus in Dwarka in 2016. Asking about the condition of the general infrastructure of the college, students mention that it is common for lifts to malfunction, the stairs are in bad condition, and the new campus has fallen into rust with time.
The auditorium has been closed by the college administration, with no updates on when it will be reopened as of now. Related to the ignorance of the administration, another student mentioned,
The general infrastructure of the college was good initially, but its buildings are snapping and need maintenance. But the administration is not taking swift action.
Infrastructure woes have troubled DU colleges for years. But frequent, life-threatening mishaps need to be treated seriously. Voices should be raised against poor infrastructure, low college funds, and the malfunctioning of the administration department. It is, after all, a question of students’ and faculty’s safety. Why are college funds not diverted to maintain college infrastructure? Why does the administration hardly ever step up during such deadly accidents? Are infrastructure mishaps going to plague DU forever? Where does this end?
Read Also: The Sky is Falling – State of Infrastructure at Kamala Nehru College
Featured Image Credits: Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College Website
Priyanka Mukherjee
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