Kids' death in schools: HC orders setting up of special task force

The bench also said executive engineers of municipal corporations should visit the schools regularly and take steps to ensure that the defects, if found, are rectified.

New Delhi: Delhi High Court on Thursday took serious note of children dying in freak accidents in schools and directed setting up of zone-wise special task forces for their inspection to avoid such incidents which have claimed the lives of two students in the recent past.

Terming as "unfortunate" the two incidents in which two children died in their schools here, a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal directed all schools to carry out periodical inspection of their buildings and premises and submit a quarterly report to the Directorate of Education (DoE).

The bench also said executive engineers of municipal corporations should visit the schools under their areas on a monthly basis and immediately take steps to ensure that the defects, if found, are rectified.

The court order came on a plea seeking judicial inquiry into the deaths of two children in Ryan International School in Vasant Kunj and a municipal school in Kapashera area and for disaster management assessment of all the schools here.

"All schools in Delhi including MCD, NDMC, government schools, private schools, government aided schools shall carry out periodical inspection of school buildings and premises and submit a quarterly report to the office of DoE, caretaking branch, GNCTD," the bench said in a bid to prevent any such incidents in future.

"DoE is directed to constitute a special task force, zone-wise, which will visit the schools under their respective zones on a monthly basis and submit their reports before DoE, caretaking branch, GNCTD," the bench said while disposing of the plea.

The PIL filed by Col (Retd) Devinder Sehrawat, MLA from Bijwasan constituency, had sought to fix responsibility on the erring authorities or school management, payment of Rs 50 lakh compensation to the families of deceased boys and to ensure safety of students in the schools.

Divyansh Kakrora, a six-year-old Class I student of Ryan International School in Vasant Kunj in South Delhi was killed after falling into a tank in his school on January 30.

In a similar incident on January 27, five-year-old Ankit died after falling into an open septic tank in an primary municipal school in Kapashera area of south Delhi.