Ceiling collapses in DU’s lab during exam, student injured
On Mondays at around 4pm, a practical exam at Delhi University’s North Campus took an alarming turn a section of the Botany lab’s ceiling collapsed. A total of 48 students and four faculty members were present inside the lab during the test of Developmental Biology of Plants when the incident took place. The impact left a first-year MSc student Gaurav Rawat injured.
Amid panic, students rushed to help the injured. “We were about to submit our practical when we heard a loud thud. For a few seconds, no one understood what had happened. It was only when we saw the debris on the floor, and Gaurav injured, that we realised how scary it was,” says a student who witnessed the incident, adding, “Gaurav has got fivesix stitches and he returned to the campus to appear for the exam the next day.”
Dinabandhu Saahoo, head of the Department of Botany at DU, says, “It was very sad and unfortunate that our student had to go through such an injury and experience. We immediately took him to the health centre at the university, and from there to Tirath Ram Shah Hospital in Civil Lines. He was given the best available medical treatment and we took him back to his hostel when he was feeling better. The student is recovering, and we are taking care of all his medical expenses as well as helping him appear for the remaining exams, keeping a close check on his health.” Though the department’s swift response was deemed “satisfactory” by the students, the incident has raised concerns over the varsity’s ageing infrastructure and the need for preventive checks. Saahoo adds, “I have already informed the Proctor’s office and the engineering department to remove all false ceilings, as we do not want a similar incident to happen again.”
Our efforts to reach out to the varsity’s Engineering Department were met with no response till the time of going to the press.*
The buildings are old, and it’s not surprising that the gypsum false ceiling fell... Now we are not conducting any exams in Lab room 26 and also the two other labs that have similar ceiling as we don’t want to compromise on the safety and security of students. DINABANDHU SAAHOO, Head of the Department of Botany at DU