09-10-2009, 02:57 PM
New Delhi: The Delhi government on Thursday ordered an inquiry into the tragic death of five students following a stampede in a school.
According to reports, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit ordered the probe after taking stock of the situation and meeting the critically injured students, who are being treated in Guru Tegh Bahadur (GTB) Hospital.
The Chief Minister has expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy and announced compensation for the victims.
"It is an extremely sad incident," she said and announced an ex-gratia of Rs one lakh to the next of kin of those killed and Rs 50,000 for those injured.
The tragedy took place in a Government Senior Secondary School located in the Khajoori Khas locality. The school will remain closed for four days in view of the tragic incident.
The stamped occurred after students were asked to vacate the classroom following rumours that heavy rain has caused a short circuit in the water logged compound.
The news created panic among the students and they started rushing to safer areas, which resulted in the death of five students in a stampede.
The students, in the age group of 14 to 18, were giving an examination before the commotion started.
As many as 21 students have sustained serious injuries in the incident.
Five students are said to be in critical condition and have been put on a life support system.
All top officials of the Delhi government have rushed to the area to take stock of the situation.
"Five girl students were killed in the incident while 32 students were injured," Joint Commissioner (New Delhi) Dharmendra Kumar said while confirming the development.
"There was a stampede as some of the children on the first floor were asked to come down and others were asked to go up and apparently the staircase was very narrow. Most of the children got stuck there," Kumar said.
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Delhi Education Minister rushed to the GTB hospital to meet the injured students soon after the news broke.
The government has also postponed a cabinet meeting in view of the incident.
A large number of police personnel have been deployed outside the school to avoid any confrontation with the angry onlookers who have blocked the normal traffic.
The tragedy occurred at a time when heavy rain has crippled normal life in the city since last night, leading to water logging in many areas and huge traffic snarls.
According to reports, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit ordered the probe after taking stock of the situation and meeting the critically injured students, who are being treated in Guru Tegh Bahadur (GTB) Hospital.
The Chief Minister has expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy and announced compensation for the victims.
"It is an extremely sad incident," she said and announced an ex-gratia of Rs one lakh to the next of kin of those killed and Rs 50,000 for those injured.
The tragedy took place in a Government Senior Secondary School located in the Khajoori Khas locality. The school will remain closed for four days in view of the tragic incident.
The stamped occurred after students were asked to vacate the classroom following rumours that heavy rain has caused a short circuit in the water logged compound.
The news created panic among the students and they started rushing to safer areas, which resulted in the death of five students in a stampede.
The students, in the age group of 14 to 18, were giving an examination before the commotion started.
As many as 21 students have sustained serious injuries in the incident.
Five students are said to be in critical condition and have been put on a life support system.
All top officials of the Delhi government have rushed to the area to take stock of the situation.
"Five girl students were killed in the incident while 32 students were injured," Joint Commissioner (New Delhi) Dharmendra Kumar said while confirming the development.
"There was a stampede as some of the children on the first floor were asked to come down and others were asked to go up and apparently the staircase was very narrow. Most of the children got stuck there," Kumar said.
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Delhi Education Minister rushed to the GTB hospital to meet the injured students soon after the news broke.
The government has also postponed a cabinet meeting in view of the incident.
A large number of police personnel have been deployed outside the school to avoid any confrontation with the angry onlookers who have blocked the normal traffic.
The tragedy occurred at a time when heavy rain has crippled normal life in the city since last night, leading to water logging in many areas and huge traffic snarls.
