Two hubs, one dream: How Old Rajinder Nagar, Mukherjee Nagar transformed from refugee settlements to UPSC coaching enclaves

Mukherjee Nagar, in contrast, offers a mismatch of tiny and corporate-style coaching centres. This enclave is a haven not only for those pursuing the IAS-IPS dream but also for those aiming for other government jobs through SSC and judiciary exams.

Industry experts estimate that over the past two decades, approximately 1,000 coaching centres have sprung up in these hubs, with around 200 located in Old Rajinder Nagar alone. What is the difference between the two hubs? The medium of instruction. Students comfortable with English flock to Old Rajinder Nagar, while those who prefer vernacular languages and are simultaneously preparing for other competitive exams gravitate towards Mukherjee Nagar.

Three days after the tragic incident where three students studying in the basement of Rau’s IAS Study Circle, in Old Rajinder Nagar, died after the basement flooded, the area wore a desolate look. The coaching centres were shuttered as students took to the streets to hold sporadic protests under the watchful gaze of police and Rapid Action Force personnel. Most teachers stood on the sidelines, even as students urged them to join the protest. A teacher, who wished to remain anonymous, expressed the dilemma faced by many educators: “I want to support the students’ agitation, but I also fear reprisal from the coaching centres.”

UPSC aspirants stage protest outside Rao IAS Study Centre after the death of three students due to flooding in the basement of the coaching centre, at Old Rajinder Nagar in New Delhi. (Express Photo/Amit Mehra)

Even before these areas became synonymous with UPSC aspirations, Old Rajinder Nagar and Mukherjee Nagar have been marked by resilience. Post-independence, they became a refuge for those displaced from West Punjab. Initially settled in makeshift camps, the refugees later received housing allotments in Kingsway Camp (today GTB Nagar), central Delhi’s Khan Market, or west Delhi’s Rajinder Nagar, West Patel Nagar, Moti Nagar, and Rajouri Garden among other areas.

A walk down memory lane

Previously a hub for mining activities, Old Rajinder Nagar was built on Khampur Raya and Shadipur villages, with origins dating back to 1000 BC. “The Aravalis began in this area, making it a hub for mining activities,” says Paras Tyagi, co-founder of the Centre for Youth Culture Law & Environment, a nonprofit based in New Delhi. “In 1911, all the sandstone for Lutyens’ Delhi was sourced from here.”

Conversely, Mukherjee Nagar, located near Yamuna Bank, was earmarked by the British for establishing Delhi. However, concerns about flooding shifted those plans. The area included Dhaka Village, which was not particularly fertile but rich in wildlife. “Delhi resembled the wild west, with leopards roaming the area, and people relying on groundwater and rainfall to grow wheat and bajra,” says Tyagi.

From 1911 to 1947, when India was under British rule, these villages underwent urbanisation as the land was acquired for the Cantonments, later the Indian government acquired the land in parcels.

After Partition, Delhi welcomed nearly half a million refugees. The government approached this challenge as a “national emergency” resulting in the Relief and Rehabilitation Policy of 1948. The main focus was on making refugees self-sufficient by addressing urgent needs in housing and education. “Urban refugees are nearly two million. Housing is their biggest problem,” the then union minister of rehabilitation, Mohan Lal Saksena, had said, By 1950, the government had allocated approximately 2,958 acres for resettlement, and refuges were given newly constructed houses in independent townships or plots in areas such as Shadipur, Malka Ganj, Nizamuddin, Jangpura, Regharpura, GTB Nagar and Rajinder Nagar.

Rajesh Bhatia, BJP leader and former councillor from Old Rajinder Nagar, recalls that his family, who had come to Delhi from Sialkot (now in Pakistan), was among the first allottees. “All this area, which is now crammed with coaching centres and cafes, was covered in the wilderness. Pura jungle tha,” he says.

“My grandfather used to tell us that refugee families were provided a temporary cement sheeted two-room set, which was around 85 to 55 yards. A local shopping centre was created with 104 shops, with the top floors meant for residence and the ground floor for commercial activity,” says Bhatia, adding that families had to shell out Rs 2,700 for the same, which was a steep amount at the time.

However, not everyone got the same accommodation. Historian Ravinder Kaur, author of Since 1947: Partition Narratives among Punjabi Migrants of Delhi, says the Ministry of Rehabilitation’s compensation policies did not address caste, leading to unequal resettlement outcomes. “This is why you find huge distinctions between people who got very large plots in Nizamuddin (and) those who got smaller plots in Rajinder Nagar and Tilak Nagar,” she told the Indian Express in 2022.

Houses continued to be allotted in the first decade of Independence. The refugees were given overcrowded, small accommodations. Soon they spilled into other areas like Patel Nager. Gradually, several more properties came up in the region and the rates of rental properties went up, making them a vital source of income for the residents.

“Earlier, people would rent to families, but soon many legal issues cropped up after tenants refused to vacate. As a result, residential owners began renting to bankers, doctors, and government officers on lease, knowing they would leave after being transferred. The PG business came as a boon, as students typically stay here for six to ten months and then move on. Many seniors now depend on renting small 10-12 feet rooms to students, charging around Rs 10,000 to 15,000 a month — enough to run their households,” says Bhatia.

Amar Nath, who owns a bookshop in Mukherjee Nagar since 2002, says, “When I first moved here, there were just five to seven shops. The houses here had been allotted to refugees. Later, as the area got a reputation as a coaching hub, numerous centres cropped up. As more and more people rented out the top residential storeys assigned to them, the residential areas started vanishing.”

The promise of success

As the years rolled on, the landscape began to shift dramatically by the turn of the millennium. As land use violation cases began to pile up, mixed land use (MLU) — a development that combines residential, commercial, cultural, or institutional functions was permitted — in residential areas was one of the crucial developments in the Master Plan of Delhi-2021, paving the way for coaching centres to flourish.

Anil Kumar, owner of Kumar Book Centre in Old Rajinder Nagar, the oldest bookshop in the area, has witnessed this transformation firsthand since he moved to Delhi from Patna in 2001. “Initially, I set up shop near Miranda House, where most UPSC aspirants would hang out, and later moved to Old Rajinder Nagar as the area evolved into a coaching hub. Initially, there was only Vajiram & Ravi (1976) in the area, later SriRam IAS opened next to it, followed by Next IAS, Vision, and several others. Before one knew it the area was entirely up by coaching institutions,” he says.

Today, he estimates, 20,000-25,000 new students arrive annually, drawn by the promise of success.

Shweta Singh, a former UPSC student-turned-coach, reflects on how the industry has evolved over the decades. “Rau’s IAS Study Circle, which was set up in 1953 was one of the first coaching centres in Delhi, with its first office on Barakhamba Road. Shashank Atom launched ALS in Mukherjee Nagar in the 1990s, and by 2003, classes had about 30-35 students, with Mukherjee Nagar seeing a boom in coaching centres in the 2000s, as more people learned that they could take coaching for attaining the premier government job.”

“From 1990 to 2010, early entrants enjoyed a big advantage as they were in high demand with students. As YouTube gained popularity other mentors were also able to make a brand for themselves, and build a profitable business by providing premium study material to thousands of students at a nominal rate,” she says.

Mukesh Singh, who came to Mukherjee Nagar as a student in 1998, and settled here as a printing associate, recalls the ubiquitous printing and book shops that complemented the burgeoning coaching hub were nowhere to be seen at the time. “There used to be nothing barring some chole bhature stalls opposite Batra Cinema. As the industry grew many students started taking tiny accommodations in Gandhi Vihar and Nehru Vihar. Initially, only IAS coaching was provided, later bank PO and several other small coaching’s relocated here from Laxmi Nagar.”

The coaching centre business was burgeoning in Mukherjee Nagar by 2018. (Express File Photo by Amit Mehra)

The coaching culture has also undergone a sea change since 2010 thanks to a surge in ed-tech platforms offering online courses. “Today, the coaching circuit is more corporate. When I was studying, resources were limited; we relied on the Delhi University library for books while pursuing degrees from LSR, Miranda, and others. Hostel facilities and libraries were crucial for our studies, unlike today’s students who often stay in PGs and study in reading rooms,” says Shweta Singh.

Many aspirants who clear the Mains but fail to crack interviews switch to coaching as a full-time career, which also contributes to the prolific growth of coaching centres. “They possess niche knowledge, but no degree-wise articulation, thus many ex-aspirants move to mentoring after exhausting their attempts, Many get popular and open their institutes,” she says.

Affordable housing, proximity to DU

Mukherjee Nagar rapidly became a premier coaching hub, primarily due to its proximity to Delhi University. “Most areas around DU were expensive, however, Mukherjee Nagar was relatively affordable, making it ideal for both students and UPSC coaching. Initially, in the 90s, the Mukherjee Nagar area had ample green areas and was less populated, making it easier to establish commercial complexes,” Sharma says, adding that the opening of the Batra Cinema also spurred development.

“Additionally, the presence of paying guest accommodations, provides students with affordable housing options, with students from rural areas spreading out to Gandhi Vihar and Nehru Vihar where one can get cramped and shabby accommodations for a few thousands,” she says.

Old Rajinder Nagar has carved out its niche as a coaching hub, largely due to the establishment of Vajiram, the first major coaching institute in the area. “Vajiram’s success sparked a chain reaction, leading to the opening of numerous other educational institutions, creating a concentrated centre,” she says.

When asked why he moved away from Madhya Pradesh to Delhi, 23-year-old Aman, says, “I chose to come to Old Rajinder Nagar because most IAS officers are a product of these institutes. I chose Rajinder Nagar over Mukherjee Nagar as most successful candidates take their exams in English. Besides, it’s centrally located, has good law and order, and offers all the necessary facilities, including paying guest accommodations. The proximity to the commercial centre in Karol Bagh is also a big plus.”

‘Hodgepodge’

As these neighborhoods continue to evolve, concerns about land misuse have arisen. Tyagi points out that many coaching centres operate structures exceeding their permitted Floor Area Ratio (FAR). “Chapter 5 of the Master Plan 2021 states they can only utilise two-thirds of the area, with restrictions on commercialisation,” he says. In just five years, GST collections from coaching centres have surged from a modest Rs 2,240 crore to an impressive Rs 5,517 crore.

Parveen Gandhi, a property dealer, whose family settled in Old Rajinder Nagar in 1968, says, “The basements which double up as reading rooms can be rented for Rs 40,000-50,000. Buildings can be rented for Rs 35 lakh, and individual floors for Rs 1,25,000.”

Raj Malhotra, who runs a coaching centre, reflects on the challenges this growth has brought. “Old Rajinder Nagar has a very long history; it became an educational hub around two and a half decades ago, but it has been growing rapidly. However, infrastructure and logistics have not been updated. More PGs and libraries have taken root, but the government has not stepped in. There’s a nexus of PG culture and agents exploiting kids. Families pay through their nose — ordinary rooms cost between Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000, while coaching can range from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh,” he says.

Shreyansh, a 24-year-old student from Madhya Pradesh, describes the cramped conditions many students face. “We live in tiny rooms, paying around Rs 15,000 to Rs 17,000. Ventilation is poor, and we hope to save on electricity bills while needing space to study,” he says. On being asked how he likes the area, he calls it a “hodgepodge, not well-planned.”

Ramesh Singh, an advertisement vendor in Mukherjee Nagar, draws attention to the fire mishaps that have taken place in the area. “Last year, a fire had broken out at a coaching centre and students had to rappel down the building using wires and ropes! However, no lessons were learned as several centres are still not following fire safety measures. The administration pays little attention until a tragedy takes place.”

The influx of students, while a boon for the local economy, has also led to tensions with residents. “The students can be found on the streets at all hours, thanks to the 24/7 reading rooms. They can be seen smoking or reveling in the streets until 3 in the morning. Many shops have cropped up to cater to their needs,” says Bhatia.

Despite these challenges, the coaching hubs of Old Rajinder Nagar and Mukherjee Nagar continue to thrive, embodying the relentless ambition and hope of thousands of students. In a city that never sleeps, these neighbourhoods are where dreams are forged, one class at a time.