BHUBANESWAR: The Bahanaga high school which was turned into a temporary morgue to keep dead bodies in the immediate aftermath of the deadly train mishap there is likely to be demolished.
Sources said the move is being contemplated as the school premises had become directly associated with the most horrific and tragic aspect of the train crash by turning into a morgue. The school building is no longer deemed suitable for carrying on with education for it would create a stressful atmosphere for the young students. School and Mass Education secretary Aswathy S said a decision in this regard will be taken soon.
“One of our teams visited Bahanaga high school on Wednesday. Balasore collector and other administration also visited the school and spoke to the members of the school management committee (SMC) today. The government will take the decision on the basis of reports of the department and the district administration,” she said.
The SME secretary, however, said keeping in view the stress students and teachers of the schools are going through after the tragic incident, the department will send a psychosocial team to counsel them.
“We understand that some children are under stress. A number of our teachers who were a part of the rescue operation and handled the injured are also under a lot of trauma. Accordingly, counselling has been planned. It will be done on the basis of local requirements and if needed, other stakeholders will be involved,” she said.
Giving more details, Balasore collector Dattatraya Bhausaheb Shinde told The New Indian Express that after mutilated bodies retrieved from the mangled coaches were kept in the school, the SMC had recommended demolition of the existing structure and construction of a new one.
“Because of the blood stains and smell, the SMC members feel it is not safe to continue classes there and therefore have suggested the building be demolished. They also said it may also remind students about the incident and affect their mental health for which they don’t want to take any risk,” Shinde said.
Sources said a total of 211 bodies were kept in the school on June 2 before they were shifted to other places.