Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
At least 14 schoolchildren were killed and 20 others injured after the roof of a private tuition centre operating from an under-construction building collapsed in Lahore on Tuesday, police said. The children, aged between seven and 13 years, were attending classes when the roof caved in and trapped them under the debris.
Police said a female teacher was also among those taken to hospital, while rescue teams continued searching the rubble for any remaining victims. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz directed the police and district authorities to identify those responsible for the collapse and begin criminal proceedings against them.
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The incident took place at the academy in the densely populated Kahna Nau area, where more than 30 children were present at the time of the collapse. “So far, 14 bodies of children have been recovered from the debris,” Lahore Deputy Inspector General of Police (Operations) Faisal Kamran told reporters.
Kamran said part of the building was under construction and labourers were working there when the roof fell. “A part of the building was under construction and labourers were busy at work when the roof collapsed. We have arrested the contractor,” he said.
Lahore District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Tariq Mahmood said the building housed a private tuition centre being run by a woman from the locality. The Edhi Foundation said the roof of the academy in the residential building in the Basti Eid Gah locality of Kahna Nau area “collapsed suddenly”. “The bodies of the deceased were shifted to the morgue at General Hospital,” the NGO said in a statement, adding that the death toll may rise as some children are still trapped under the debris.
The charity said the injured had been shifted to hospital and their condition was stated to be stable. It added that rescue operations were continuing at full pace, with Edhi ambulances deployed at the site to provide emergency medical assistance. Provincial health authorities declared an emergency at Lahore General Hospital and directed senior administrative officials, doctors, nurses and paramedical staff to ensure immediate treatment of the injured.
The collapse of the tuition centre roof in Lahore left 14 children dead and 20 others injured, with rescue teams still searching the debris and authorities moving against those held responsible.
With PTI Inputs
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
