Rajasthan: Last rites of 7 children killed in school roof collapse held, case lodged against teachers

Kota: The last rites of seven schoolchildren, who died after a roof collapse at a government school in Rajasthan's Jhalawar district, were performed on Saturday in an atmosphere of grief and mourning, officials said. While six of the children were cremated collectively in Piplodi village, one girl was cremated at her native Chandpura Bihlai village in the Dangipura area, they said. The bodies were handed over to the families after post-mortem at the community health centre in Manohorethana on Saturday morning.

The Education Department has decided to construct classrooms in the names of each child on the school premises. The process will begin soon, Chief District Education Officer Ram Singh Meena said. Meanwhile, classes for children in the Piplodi village will resume from July 28 in a nearby government school until the new building is ready, he added. Based on a complaint lodged by the father of one the children, police have registered a case against under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 106 (causing death by negligence) and 215 (refusing to sign statement) against five staff teachers, Dangipura Station House Officer (SHO) Vijendra Singh said.

Also read NHRC notice to Rajasthan government over Jhalawar school building collapse

Kanha (7), his sister Meena (10), Kundan (10), Harish (11), Payal (13), and Kartik (8), were cremated in Piplodi village while and Priyanka (12), was cremated at Chandpura village, he said. Jhalawar Sub-Divisional Magistrate Abhishek Charan said a five-member committee headed by the chief executive officer of the Zila Parishad has been constituted to investigate the matter.

Compensation announced

Seven of the injured children have been discharged from the hospital while six others remain under treatment, he said. The state government has announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the families of the children who were killed. The process to disburse the cheques is underway. Compensation for the injured students is being assessed based on medical reports, Charan added.

Former chief minister Vasundhara Raje and MP Dushyant Singh visited Piplodi village and met the bereaved families. Raje also visited the community health centre at Manhorethana to inquire about the condition of the injured children. Former state minister Pramod Jain Bhaya also visited Piplodi and blamed the state government for the incident.