Odisha: 1 student killed, 2 injured as part of school wall collapses

Koraput: A class 3 student was killed and two others injured after a portion of a wall collapsed at a state-run residential school in Odisha's Koraput district, police said on Thursday. The incident took place at Gandhi Nagar Ashram (for SC and ST students) at Kotpad on Wednesday. The deceased has been identified as eight-year-old Premananda Bhatra.

The injured students were initially taken to Kotpad for treatment and later referred to the district headquarters hospital at Jeypore. "One of the injured students was discharged after preliminary treatment and has returned to the hostel, while the other, who suffered a leg injury, is undergoing treatment at the district headquarters hospital," said district welfare officer Sunil Kumar Tandi.

Also read IIT Bombay, Vertiv collaborate to improve cooling strategies for AI-driven data centres

Officials said the incident occurred within the hostel premises. A four-foot-high wall with an inauguration plaque suddenly gave way. Terming the incident unfortunate, Tandi said an inquiry committee has been constituted under the chairmanship of the Jeypore sub-collector. "The committee will conduct a detailed inquiry and submit its report to the district collector for necessary action," he said.

The Gandhi Nagar Ashram School, managed by the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Development Department, offers education from Classes 1 to 8 and caters to children from SC and ST communities.