One injured as roof of pre-primary school collapses in Mangaluru

Mangaluru: A child sustained injuries after the roof of a pre-primary school collapsed at Kenjar in Pejawar village of Mangaluru taluk on Monday.

The injured student, Shonith, is in the UKG section of Mukhyaprana Pre-Primary School. According to eyewitnesses, students ran out of the classroom after noticing tiles starting to slip.

"The school has LKG and UKG sections with 22 students in total. While the class was in session, a gusty of wind caused the roof of the classroom to collapse. The building had recently undergone renovation," said Mangaluru North Block Education Officer (BEO) James Cutinho to DH.

Locals pointed out that even when 10–20 people had worked on the roof earlier, nothing had happened.

“There were only a few minutes left for the school to close for the afternoon. Suddenly, strong winds began to blow. Within moments, the roof of the old part of the building completely collapsed. Tiles were scattered all around,” said teacher Geetha.

The school building is over 50 years old, although additional classrooms were built 10 years ago. The roof of the old section had been repaired in May 2023. The school was formerly government-aided. However, following the retirement of the headmistress, no new appointments were made. Facing closure due to a shortage of teachers, the villagers, led by the alumni association, stepped in three years ago with the help of donors to start pre-primary school, said local residents.