Windows without grilles an underrated hazard

The 11-year-old boy who fell to death from the eighth floor of an apartment building on Sunday was at a window between two flats when the accident occurred.

Two DH reporters visited the building in Hoodi on Wednesday. Roy, the boy who lost his life, was a class 7 student. His parents, both software engineers.

Architects DH reporters spoke to said the brick wall at the window met the minimum height requirement of 1.2 m (about four feet). However, it had no grille on the top, and the window overlooked a drop of nearly 65 feet.

“Usually, in windows on the lower floors, grilles are fixed as an anti-theft measure, but not on the higher levels,” said an architect from a prominent construction firm in Bengaluru.

Residents said such windows, located between flats on all floors, are usually kept closed.

“The entire society is in shock and we can’t believe what happened. I can’t say the window is unsafe as the sill is high enough, but he may have been leaning out of the window or slipped,” said a resident.

It was past 8 pm and the children’s playtime had ended and no one was around when the boy fell. Security guards heard a thud and rushed to find Roy lying in a pool of blood. “Nobody is sure of the exact sequence of events,” a resident said.

Most modern residential and commercial complexes feature such ornamental windows, but without bars and metal grilles, they pose a safety risk, especially for children.

Many architects prefer glass or flimsier fibre glass to cover them, as metal grilles do not have the same aesthetic effect.

“It would help to assess the risks, and fix grilles to avoid such windows becoming a hazard to life and limb.”

Aesthetics over safety

Safety should be the priority but most builders choose aesthetics over safety.

“People go with aesthetic buildings now, giving least priority to safety. Most homes do not have grilles anymore and that’s why these accidents happen.

“This incident is not the first. Priority must be given to children’s safety. Grilles in a balcony and windows are a must to reduce the number of casualties,” said Vijay Kumar A, director of Adobe Builders.

The building Roy fell from has a fire escape and staircase, but he did not fall from there, as described in some reports.