E-Paper
Ballia schoolboy electrocuted; thousands of UP students remain at risk
The incident reignited concerns regarding the safety of government schools in Uttar Pradesh, where thousands of students remain at risk due to high-tension power lines running over school premises.
Prefer HTon Google
An 11-year-old student died on Monday after coming into contact with a high-tension wire on the roof of his school in the Kanaila Dalit Basti of Ballia on Monday. The victim, identified as Arshad, a Class 4 student, had allegedly been sent to the roof to pluck a gourd plant.
The incident, however, reignited concerns regarding the safety of government schools in Uttar Pradesh, where thousands of students remain at risk due to high-tension power lines running over school premises.
The Ballia incident is part of a systemic crisis. In July 2019, 55 students suffered burns after a high-tension wire fell onto a government primary school in Balrampur’s Utraula tehsil, prompting a statewide survey that has yet to fully resolve the danger.
Currently, high-tension lines still run over 615 government schools in Uttar Pradesh, threatening more than 5,000 students. Ballia itself has 30 such schools.
At the start of the current financial year, 9,206 schools were identified as being at risk. While the government has been working to relocate these lines, the process remains slow. According to UPPCL, lines were removed from 5,316 schools by the end of July, and the number of affected institutions was further reduced to 615 by the end of October.
Districts like Prayagraj and Jaunpur report the highest number of affected schools, with nearly 100 each.
Officials acknowledge the severity of the risk, noting that some school campuses even contain electrical transformers. “The department has been pursuing the matter with the power department. Very soon, no school will have this issue,” an education department spokesperson stated.
However, teachers remain skeptical. “Children and staff live in fear, especially during thunderstorms,” said a government teacher in Prayagraj. “In the event of an accident, compensation is announced, but accountability is rarely fixed. It often feels like a cover-up.”
The Ballia incident
According to the victim’s family, a teacher had directed Arshad to the school’s rooftop, which was dangerously close to an overhead high-tension line. Upon contact with the wire, the boy was electrocuted, sparking panic among his classmates.
The incident triggered protests by local villagers, who allegedly held teachers hostage for four hours. The situation was brought under control following the arrival of officials,sub divisional magistrate (Sadar) Gopesh Tiwari, basic shiksha adhikari (BSA) Manish Kumar Singh, block education officer (BEO) Vishal Yadav, a sub divisional officer from the electricity department and circle officer (City) Satish Kumar Sharma, and police teams from multiple stations.
An FIR has been registered based on the family’s complaint, and the boy’s body has been sent for a post-mortem.
Following the incident, the basic education department has suspended the in-charge headmaster, Vijay Shankar and assistant teacher, Anil Kumar, for alleged negligence. Both have been attached to the Primary School in Pachkhora, and a detailed inquiry is underway, led by block education officer (BEO) Pankaj Singh.
Confirming it, BSA Manish Kumar Singh said, “Prima facie, negligence of teachers came to the fore due to which the accident occurred. Action has been taken against both of them. A detailed inquiry will be conducted into the matter. Further action will be taken based on finding of the inquiry.”
Additionally, the department has initiated proceedings to terminate the services of Shiksha Mitra Deepchand Ram.
BSA Manish Kumar Singh assured the family that the department would provide financial support, while the electricity department has promised compensation of up to ₹4 lakh.
