Seven students killed as roof of govt school collapses in Rajasthan
Rajasthan school building collapse news: According to the police, most of those trapped have been rescued, and the operations are underway.
4 min read
Around 8.30 am, students had just arrived and were on their way to morning prayers when the roof of a room in the school building gave way. (PTI)The roof of a government primary school in Piplodi village of Rajasthan’s Jhalawar district collapsed Friday morning, killing seven students and leaving eight critically injured. The incident prompted the state’s Bhajan Lal Sharma government to order a probe and led to the suspension of five government teachers.
The incident occurred at 8.30 am, when students of the Government Higher Primary School gathered for morning prayers. One student described the panic when part of the roof began to slide down. “We were about to start the school prayers when great chunks began to fall,” the student said. “We asked the teachers to let us out, but they said there was nothing to worry about. Suddenly, the whole roof collapsed, but some friends and I managed to run out before it fell. Our teachers then called for help.”
According to officials, 35 students were pulled out from the debris.
The injured were taken to the Manoharthana Primary Health Centre (CHC), where doctors declared seven students dead. Eleven children are still admitted at the SRG Hospital in Jhalawar. Videos circulating after the incident showed distraught parents mourning for their lost children.
The incident led to protests in the area, with residents of Piplodi and nearby villages blockading the Jhalawar-Manoharthana road to demand compensation of Rs 1 crore for the families of the dead and Rs 50 lakh to the injured.
Rajasthan Education Minister Madan Dilawar announced Rs 10 lakh each to the families of the dead as well as a job for a member of the family. Also, classrooms set to be built in the school’s newly constructed building will be named after the students who died, he said.
According to Sub-Divisional Magistrate B L Meena, the district administration never received complaints about the school’s condition. “We are still investigating how this school building was never identified as dangerous and will take the appropriate action soon,” Meena said.
Minister Dilawar, who visited the spot, said the government had ordered a probe into the incident.
A Rajasthan teachers’ union, however, has protested the teachers’ suspension.
“It’s not just the teachers’ responsibility to see that the building was dilapidated,” Narayan Singh Sisodia, spokesperson for the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Evam Madhyamik Shikshak Sangh, told The Indian Express. “Government engineers who survey buildings should be questioned too. The teachers were made scapegoats in this.”
Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the incident, district education officers across the state have begun issuing circulars to government schools warning them against holding classes in structurally compromised buildings.
The district has witnessed heavy rain in the last few days.
Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and his predecessor Ashok Gehlot offered their condolences.
“The tragic incident of the collapse of a school’s roof at Piplodi in Jhalawar is extremely sad and heartbreaking. The concerned authorities have been directed to ensure proper treatment of the injured children. May God grant a place to the departed divine souls in his feet and give strength to the bereaved family to bear this immense sorrow,” Sharma said.
Gehlot’s post on X said: “Several children and teachers are reported to have been injured in the collapse of a government school building in Manohar Thana, Jhalawar. I pray to God that the loss of life is minimal and that the injured recover quickly”.
The Rajasthan Human Rights Commission took suo motu cognizance of the roof collapse and issued notice to the Jhalawar district magistrate, the district education officer, the director of education in Bikaner, and the Jhalawar superintendent of police.
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