The Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) has asked the Keonjhar district Collector to pay Rs 3 lakh to the family of a school student, Srikant Mohanty, who had died as a school wall collapsed over him.
In his complaint lodged before the NHRC, Supreme Court lawyer and rights activist RadhakantaTripathy had stated that the Class VII student of Ambo UP School, Hatdihi in Keonjar district died as a wall collapsed over him while he was pissing in the school urinal. The victim lost his life due to weak construction of the wall for which the School and Mass Education Department and the district administration should be held responsible.
Taking cognizance of Tripathy’s complaint, the NHRC transferred the case to the OHRC to act over the issue.
The OHRC then directed the department Secretary and Keonjhar district Collector to reply in detail. In his reply, Anandpur Sub Collector informed that Rs 12,000 had been given to the victim’s family.
But OHRC observed that the wall of the urinal had caved in all of sudden, causing the student’s death. The report submitted by the BEO and the Block Resource Coordinator also admitted that Srikant and two others had gone to the urinal. While two others were saved, Srikant died. The urinal had been constructed in 2009 by an NGO, ‘SANCHAR’ of Ghasipura block at a cost of Rs 20,000.
The OHRC observed that the State cannot evade its responsibility to pay compensation to the parents of the deceased.