Jaipur, Aug 15 (IANS) A 12-year-old girl was killed while another was injured when the balcony of an under-construction government school collapsed in Udaipur’s Kotra area on Friday.

The incident took place in Patharwadi village, a tribal-dominated area, where construction of a senior secondary school is underway.

Police said the victims, Moli (12) and Payal (11), were playing near the site when the balcony of the hall suddenly gave way.

Moli, daughter of Shyama and a resident of Gau Pipal village, had been visiting her maternal uncle in Patharwadi. Moli died under the debris, while Payal, who sustained injuries, is undergoing treatment at a hospital.

The collapse sparked anger among villagers, who alleged that substandard materials were used in construction.

Police and Education Department officials are investigating the matter.

Udaipur Education Department ADPC Nanihal Singh clarified that the school is not operational at this site; classes are being conducted in another building nearby, where Independence Day celebrations were taking place.

In Bundi, five students were injured when a false ceiling collapsed during Independence Day celebrations at St. Paul Senior Secondary School.

The injured students, Twinkle (13), Adhira (6), Srishti (10), Vinay (10) and Itisha (11), are being treated at the district hospital.

In another incident, the wall of a room collapsed at Government Higher Primary School, Fatehganj, Nainwan, Bundi, while children were changing clothes.

Fortunately, no one was injured. The incidents follow a July 25 tragedy in Jhalawar, where seven children died after part of Piplodi Government School’s building collapsed.

Leader of opposition in Rajasthan Assembly, Tika Ram Jully, said, “The news of the tragic death of an innocent girl and the injury of another in Udaipur due to the collapse of a government school balcony, along with the injury of five children in Bundi following the fall of a false ceiling, is deeply saddening and heartbreaking.”

He said, “Repeated occurrence of these painful incidents expose the government’s negligence and the alarming condition of our educational institutions.”

“It is a matter of deep shame that the government is failing to ensure such a sensitive and vital responsibility – the safety of our children. I pray to God to grant peace to the departed soul, give strength to the bereaved families to bear this unbearable loss, and wish a swift recovery to all the injured,” Jully said.

–IANS

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