A devastating building collapse in New Delhi has left at least 10 students injured, not only with physical wounds but also deep mental scars and psychological trauma. These young aspirants came to the capital chasing dreams of a better future, but now face an uncertain road to recovery.
Victims' Stories
Vishal, a 24-year-old BTech graduate from Bihar's Jehanabad district, moved to Delhi to prepare for the Indian Engineering Services (IES) examination, hoping to secure a government job and support his family. When the tragedy unfolded on Saturday, he was in the adjacent canteen celebrating his friend Kapil's new job.
“I received a call around 9 pm from one of Vishal’s friends that he was injured,” said Vishal’s sister, Lovely Devi (29), who lives in Kanpur. “The rest of our family is in Surat, where our father runs a business. Since I was closest to Delhi, I rushed here immediately.”
Holding back tears, she said that Vishal was studying hard to get a job and shoulder family responsibilities. “Just after the building collapsed, he somehow managed to hide under a table. While his upper body was shielded from the impact, a pillar fell, and he suffered multiple fractures in his legs.”
Another injured student, 25-year-old Aastha from Gwalior, completed her MBBS in Kyrgyzstan and moved to Delhi in February to prepare for the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination scheduled for June 28. Her father runs a petrol pump in Madhya Pradesh.
Terrifying Moments
Recalling the terrifying moments, her friend Anamika Attri, 26, said, “When I called Aastha, she was crying and pleading with me: 'Daabe hue hai, please bacha lo' (I am crushed, please save me).” Aastha, who is in the hospital, has lost movement below her neck.
“We still haven’t told her that Ravi bhaiya (a classmate) is dead,” Anamika said. “She can barely speak. We don’t know how she will handle the shock.”
Aastha, her friends said, was the most hardworking among them all and was meticulously preparing for the examination that she can no longer appear this year.
Recurring Tragedy
Drawing a parallel with the 2024 flooding of a tuition class in Old Rajendra Nagar, which claimed the lives of three students, they said, “Every time, students who come to Delhi seeking education and a bright future end up paying the price for others’ negligence.”
The incident highlights the recurring safety issues in the city's educational hubs, where students from across the country converge, only to face preventable disasters.
