‘Don’t send your children to Delhi to study’: Father who lost his young son in building crash

“Don’t send your children to Delhi to study…” said the distraught father of Dewas resident Arpit Jaj, who was among the seven people who died when a multi-storey building, which served as a paying guest accommodation, collapsed in the national capital two days ago.

Bhupendra Jaj, the father of Arpit (21), made this emotional appeal to parents with folded hands on Tuesday in Dewas in Madhya Pradesh as he bid final farewell to his son, who resided in the ill-fated building while studying in Delhi.

His choked voice clearly reflected the pain of losing his young son and his concern for saving other families from such a tragedy. The funeral procession of Arpit, a second-year BCom student at a Delhi college, was attended by his family, friends, teachers, and neighbours amid outpouring of emotions and grief.

After bidding farewell to his son, Bhupendra Jaj told reporters, “I just want to tell all parents not to send their children to Delhi to study in the future. I am devastated. I was educating him despite facing many difficulties.”

He said that one of Arpit’s eyes was damaged in the accident and the family decided to donate his other eye so that the life of a needy patient could be brightened.

Bhupendra Jaj, who runs a car taxi business in Dewas, claimed he faced many difficulties in searching for his son after the building collapse and did not receive the necessary help from the Delhi administration.

“We searched for Arpit from the collapsed building to hospitals, but no one was willing to tell us anything. Finally, with the help of a lawyer, we identified his body,” said the businessman.

Bhupendra Jaj demanded a thorough investigation into the building collapse and strict action against those responsible for the tragedy.

The Delhi administration should pay attention to the dilapidated buildings around the crash site to prevent such accidents in the future, he suggested.

Arpit’s grandfather, Makhanlal Jaj, remembered him as a bright child and a pillar of support for the family.

“He was the light of our family. We have lost our support,” Makhanlal Jaj said with a choked voice.

According to family members, after celebrating Rakshabandhan (August 28) and Janmashtami (September 4), Arpit left his hometown Dewas for Delhi on September 5 and arrived in the national capital on September 6.

Hours later, the building in the Satya Niketan area, where the 21-year-old BCom student resided, came crashing down, killing him and 6 others.