Lahore, Jul 1 (PTI) Pakistan’s Punjab police on Wednesday booked five persons, including a builder and the owners of a tuition centre, a day after the roof of the facility collapsed in Lahore, killing 14 schoolchildren and injuring 20 others.
The Punjab government announced a compensation of PKR 20 lakh each for the families of those killed and PKR 5 lakh for each of the injured. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz also ordered strict action against those found responsible.
Lahore Deputy Inspector General (Operations) Faisal Kamran said five people, including the builder, have been booked under Sections 322 (manslaughter) and 337-H (hurt caused by rash or negligent act) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Two of the accused have been arrested, he said.
According
to police, one of the suspects’ wives was teaching at the tuition centre when the roof collapsed. She also sustained injuries in the incident.
The tragedy occurred on Tuesday while around 35 children were attending classes in the tuition centre, which was operating from an under-construction building located in the densely populated Kahna Nau area.
Eight girls and six boys, aged between five and 13 years, died in the incident.
Rescue teams pulled out 20 injured children from the debris and shifted them to hospitals. Authorities said their condition was stable and some had already been discharged.
Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-N president Nawaz Sharif expressed grief over the tragedy, describing the victims as “the future of our nation”.
He said Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, also his daughter, has assured him that a transparent and impartial inquiry would be conducted and that those responsible would be brought to justice.
According to a Geo News report, roof and building collapses are common across Pakistan, mainly because of poor safety standards and shoddy construction materials.
Last year in July, 27 people were killed and 10 others injured when a five-storey building collapsed in the impoverished area of Karachi’s Lyari. PTI MZ SCY SCY
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