Gurgaon: Girl injured after school water cooler falls on her, parents allege negligence

The girl’s family reported the incident to the police, said a case is not being registered despite negligence

A class 7 student of Delhi Public School Ghaziabad (DPSG), Sushant Lok 1 was injured on Thursday after a water cooler fell on her while she was having water. She has been admitted to a private hospital in Palam Vihar where she is undergoing treatment. Her parents alleged that the school took her to a private hospital in Sushant Lok 1 and provided first-aid but did not go for further medical check-ups.

The school authorities claimed the girl slipped and the water cooler also fell down.

Ocean Rajshree (11), the student, received four stitches on her head and three on her chin after the school rushed her to a private hospital.

Her parents alleged that despite their complaint, police has not taken action against the school even though the girl had a severe head injury and the school authorities did not get a CT scan done.

According to her family, Rajshree was drinking water when the water cooler, which is reportedly very old, fell on her. Her friends dragged her out from under it and informed the teachers, they said.

“I received a call from the school around 2:40 pm that my sister is injured and I can pick her up from the school or the hospital. I rushed to the hospital and found her condition critical. I tried speaking to the doctors, but the school staff did not let me do so and asked me to take her home,” said Rajshree’s sister Shaifali Parmar.

She added that she called the police control room to report the incident and was asked to lodge a formal complaint at Sector 43 police post. “I handed over a complaint to the police post and took a receiving (slip) from them. The school management kept trying to compromise and asked me to take my complaint back, but I refused. Most shocking is that the police are not registering the case despite negligence by the school,” said Parmar.

On Saturday, Rajshree again complained of weakness, abdominal pain, and severe headache, after which the family took her to a private hospital in Palam Vihar, where she is still admitted.

“We immediately got her CT scan, X-ray, and ultrasound done. Reports revealed that she had abdominal injury and swelling in brain,” said Parmar.

Gaurav Phogat, SHO, Sushant Lok, said, “We have received the complaint and are investigating. During preliminary investigation, it is not established that it was negligence of the school. It was an accident”.

Sudhir Chitnis, senior administrator, DPSG said, “There was water on the floor due to which the girl slipped and the water cooler also fell down. The machine was in a good condition and there is no negligence.”