Amid outrage over the collapse of a government school roof in Rajasthan’s Jhalawar that claimed the lives of seven students, District Magistrate Ajay Singh Rathore on Saturday assured of appropriate action against those responsible for the “security lapses and negligence” that led to the tragedy.
“I express gratitude on behalf of the administration for the cooperation shown by residents of Piplodi even in the face of this tragedy. The next of kin of the deceased children only had two demands: such incidents must not recur, and appropriate action must be taken against those responsible. This incident is heartbreaking. There have been security lapses and ignorance (negligence). We will take action against those responsible for this,” DM Rathore told reporters here.
The DM further informed that the administration was already ensuring that school buildings in a dilapidated condition remain closed.
“The district administration already issued orders on June 20 that students must not be allowed to sit in buildings that remain in dilapidated conditions. We were also ensuring that earlier. Unfortunately, we got to know about the conditions here only after the tragedy struck,” he added.
Rathore visited the District Hospital on Friday to meet the injured students.
The incident occurred Friday morning when the roof of the Piplodi Primary School in Jhalawar collapsed, killing seven students and injuring several others, ADM Abhishek Charan said.
Former Rajasthan Chief Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Vasundhara Raje on Friday said the tragic roof collapse at a school in Jhalawar, which claimed the lives of seven students, could have been avoided had the building been identified as unsafe and students relocated.
“Seven school children died. Around 27 children are injured. As soon as we came to know, we were stunned. Had this building been identified and children shifted to some safe building, this would not have happened,” Raje said after visiting the injured at a hospital in Jhalawar.
“The Education Department should conduct a survey of all school buildings. Where structures are found to be in a dilapidated condition, children must be shifted to safer schools immediately,” she added.
Raje also raised concerns over the ongoing monsoon season, stressing the urgent need to demolish unsafe structures and construct new buildings. “There is also this issue that it is the rainy season, and it is raining heavily. Dilapidated school buildings should be demolished, and new, modern buildings should be constructed. So that children’s lives are not played with,” she said.
Agitated locals staged protests following the incident, demanding accountability and justice for the victims.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma expressed deep sorrow over the incident in a video statement.
“…It is a tragic incident. I am saddened by the death of innocent children in this incident. The state government is with the family members of those who are affected by this. The administration has been directed to provide better treatment for the injured,” he said.”A probe will be conducted, and we will ensure that no such incident happens again,” he added.
The state government has announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the family of each deceased student. One family member will be given a contractual job, and the school building will be reconstructed. The new classrooms will be named in memory of the children who lost their lives.