Bengaluru: Civic apathy, rain bring down Tunbridge High School wall, gate

The entire wall and front gate of the Tunbridge High School on Infantry Road collapsed on Wednesday morning. Overnight rain was the immediate cause, but the BBMP contractors had dug up the pavement four months ago, endangering the lives of young children.

It was around 9.30 am when the entire structure crashed with a loud noise. “The school was closed due to the lockdown. But there were people, including a child, in the guest house within the campus. They rushed out to find the wall and gate down,” said Kim Noble, the school principal.

The BBMP, he said, had started digging up the pavement for cables and pipes in December 2019. “They dug under the foundation of the school wall and entrance gate with total disregard that it is an educational institution and that it posed a danger to small children,” said Noble.

He said the school had questioned the contractors. “But they scoffed and asked us to put up with it for the next 10 months and that we could not complain about it as the contract was given by the BBMP. No work progressed since the digging, leaving it open and unattended for the past four months."

Children had to enter and leave the school, walking over the deep open pit at great danger and risk to their lives, he said. “In fact, a child had slipped into the pit and was rescued just in time by a security guard. The eight-ft high wall was built eight years ago.”

BBMP officials visited the spot later.