Jhalawar school collapse: Vasundhara Raje visits injured students, slams Rajasthan education dept

Jaipur, Jul 26 (PTI) Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje on Saturday expressed deep sorrow over the collapse of a government school building at Piplodi village in Jhalawar district, stating that the accident could have been prevented had the education department acted on time.

Talking to reporters after visiting the injured students at the hospital along with her son and Jhalawar-Baran MP Dushyant Singh, Raje said, "This is heartbreaking. We lost seven innocent children from our family. Twenty-eight others were injured, some critically. The moment I heard about it, both Dushyant and I immediately left for Jhalawar from Delhi." On Friday, a portion of the roof of Government Upper Primary School in Piplodi collapsed, killing seven students and injuring 28 others.

Raje criticised the state education department, saying, "If the officials had identified schools with dilapidated buildings earlier and shifted children to safer structures, this tragedy would not have occurred. The department must conduct a state-wide survey and immediately relocate students from unsafe school buildings." Calling for concrete action, she said that such buildings should be demolished and new ones constructed to ensure children's safety.

"This incident has created a climate of fear among children and parents alike," she added.

The senior BJP leader also appealed against politicising the tragedy and urged authorities to respond with empathy. "This is not the time for politics but for humanity. Let us all come together to help the affected families," she said.

Raje also visited the villages of Piplodi and Chandpura Bhilan on Saturday and offered condolences to the bereaved families. "As a mother, I can feel their pain. This tragedy marks the end of dreams that the parents and children had nurtured," she said.

MP Dushyant Singh, local MLA Govind Ranipuriya, Jhalawar District Collector Ajay Singh Rathore and Superintendent of Police Amit Kumar accompanied the former chief minister. PTI AG RUK RUK