CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Thursday directed the State government to pay compensation of Rs 10 lakh to one Madhav Soren for the death of his seven-year-old daughter due to a school wall collapse more than eight years ago.
Raimati Soren was a student of Class-I at Kolhabeda Ashram School under Ghasipura Block in Keonjhar district. She was staying in the hostel of the same school. On October 3, 2013 at about 6.45 am, Raimati and some other students were brushing their teeth near a newly constructed kitchen shed, when the side wall collapsed. While other students managed to escape, Raimati could not.
Madhav had filed a petition seeking compensation for his daughter’s death through advocate Prabir Kumar Das in 2014. While disposing of the petition, the division bench of Chief Justice S Muralidhar and Justice RK Pattanaik said during inquiry the negligence of the State authorities by using substandard materials to construct a kitchen on the school premises has been established in the case.
“The death of the young child was totally unnecessary and avoidable. The responsibility for death definitely rests with the State. The death would not have occurred if all the safety measures, that were instructed to be put in place by the State, had been strictly followed”, the bench observed.
“In the circumstances, the court directs the State to pay the petitioner a sum of Rs 10 lakh as compensation for the death of his seven-year-old daughter at Kolhabeda Ashram School. The amount already paid to him by the State earlier may be deducted and the balance sum be paid to the petitioner within a period of eight weeks from today,” the bench said.
The district administration had paid Rs 50,000 ex-gratia in addition to Rs 10,000 from the Red Cross Fund. While directing the Keonjhar Collector for filing compliance affidavit not later than October 10, 2022, the HC cautioned, “If there is non-compliance with the above direction, the Registry will list this matter for appropriate orders.”