An old man died and four people were injured after a government school building collapsed today in Ranchi under the Sukhdeonagar police station.
The school has been closed since 2018 after the students of the school were transferred to a nearby school under the Merger policy of the education department.
The injured people have been admitted to a nearby private hospital. DC Ranchi Manjunath Bhajantri has issued instructions to the Circle Officer to provide necessary help and compensation to the aggrieved family of the deceased. DC Mr Bhajantri has also directed people not to go near the collapsed school building for security reasons.
The deceased was an elderly person and was sleeping in the verandah of the school when the portion of the roof collapsed. He was identified as Suraj Baitha, 65, a resident of Ratu, and worked as a caretaker there, the officer said. The police initially said one person was feared trapped, but later confirmed that three people were injured in the incident.
The three injured have been identified as Manish Tirkey, Pritam Tirkey and Motu Oraon, all aged between 18 and 19 years, and admitted to a nearby hospital, another officer said. The school, said to be a primary one, was not operational, Kumar said. The police are investigating the incident, and further details are awaited, he said.