GUJRANWALA: Six people, five students among them, died and 13 others were injured when the wall of a private school at Fareed Town came crashing down during a ceremony here on Saturday.

The district administration sealed the school soon after the incident that cast a pall of gloom in the area.

The annual prize-distribution ceremony of K.T. Model School on Kashmir Road was going on and a number of students and their parents besides teachers had gathered in the courtyard when the wall of the second floor collapsed. Five students Fatima Rasool, 14, Shayan, 9, Noor, 16, Khadija, 11, and Mohsin, 7, and Kausar, 35, were buried alive while 13 other people were injured.

The injured including Shazia, Shafaq, Sheza, Jannat, Noor Fatima and Gulshan were shifted to the District Headquarters (DHQ) hospital.

District Emergency Officer Syed Abid Kamal said eight ambulances and six motorbikes took part in the rescue operation and shifting the injured to hospital.

Deputy Commissioner Naila Baqar, City Police Officer Dr Moeen Masood and other functionaries visited the school.

Eyewitnesses said the school administration had covered the courtyard with a tarpaulin sheet and its hooks were fixed in the four-inch wall of the second floor of the building. They said the breeze shook the wall and triggered its collapse.

Those present on the school premises ran helter-skelter to save their lives. Many people gathered and demanded an inquiry. They said more than 1,000 students had been enrolled in the school that belongs to Muhammad Saeed, the father of UC chairman Tariq Saeed. They said the school was built more than 30 years ago and it was in a dilapidated condition.

Speaking to the media, the deputy commissioner and the CPO promised an investigation into the matter to fix responsibility.

MPA Ms Shaheen Raza said Chief Minister Usman Buzdar had taken notice of the incident and ordered an inquiry. She said the buildings of more than 130 schools in the district were in a rundown condition.

Punjab Education Minister Murad Raas reached Gujranwala and visited the school and the hospital where he inquired after the injured.

The district administration sealed the school building and formed a six-member committee comprising AC city Tariq Hussain Bhatti, chief executive officer education, chief executive officer Municipal Corporation, district monitoring officer, president Private Schools Association, and deputy district monitoring officer to conduct an inquiry and submit a report. The committee would examine the school building, fitness certificate and registration.

Meanwhile, word went round that the parents and relatives of the deceased students had been asked to avoid blaming anyone and consider it an accident. The ill-fated families said they would pursue the case at every forum.

Published in Dawn, March 24th, 2019