STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: Assam Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has issued a notice to the Principal Secretary to the Government of Assam, Education Department, to conduct an inquiry into a complaint regarding the absence of fire safety measures in schools in the state. The AHRC has also asked the department to submit a report by March 22, 2023.
The National Human Rights and Crime Control Bureau (NHRCCB), an NGO, lodged a complaint before the AHRC highlighting the absence of fire safety certificates or no objection certificates (NOCs) in the schools of Tinsukia in particular, and most of the schools of the state in general. The NGO termed it a violation of the mandatory provisions of the Assam Fire Service Rules, 1989, thereby, endangering the safety of the students.
The NGO further said that ‘the Supreme Court directed the installation of fire extinguishers with the ISI mark in each block of every school and of firefighting training for Class X to XII students and teachers, for which a task force is to be constituted. Similarly, an inspection team consisting of a civil engineer, health officers, revenue officers, psychologists, fire officers of local bodies, and experts like development officers should be constituted to conduct inspections of schools from time to time. Moreover, the conditions of the buses plied for the movement of students have also turned from bad to worse; all such buses should be directed to be renovated from time to time. The mandatory provisions of the rules regarding the installation of surveillance cameras and GPS systems in the school buses to enable the parents to obtain information about the whereabouts of their children have not been followed’.
The AHRC said that the issues raised by the complainant, if true, are really disturbing and could constitute violations of the human rights of the students.
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