'Building Is 35 Years Old': Delhi Edu Minister Atishi Blames 'Unusual Climate Event' For School Wall Collapse

The wall of the school located in Garhi Jharia Maria in the East of Kailash area collapsed on Saturday amid heavy rainfall.

Delhi minister Atishi visits waterlogged areas in the city amid heavy rainfall

Source : PTI

Aam Aadmi Party minister Atishi on Sunday said that the wall of the school that collapsed amid heavy rainfall was 35 years old and that 150 millimetres of rainfall was an “unusual climate event” . The wall of the school located in Garhi Jharia Maria in the East of Kailash area collapsed on Saturday amid heavy rainfall. The incident took place in the Shrinivaspuri assembly constituency, from where Atishi is the elected MLA. 

“The wall of the school is 35 years old. 150 mm of rainfall (in 24 hours) is an unusual climate event. Today, we have also cancelled the Sunday holiday of Education department officials, and they are inspecting the schools to ensure no building is unsafe for students," the minister told news agency PTI. 

VIDEO | "The wall of the school is 35 years old. 150 mm of rainfall (in 24 hours) is an unusual climate event. Today, we have also cancelled the Sunday holiday of Education department officials, and they are inspecting the schools to ensure no building is unsafe for students,"… pic.twitter.com/TevvyRQlET

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 9, 2023

The national capital has been witnessing incessant rains for the past two days resulting in collapse of 15 buildings at various places in the city on Saturday. The problem of waterlogging has thrown normal life out of gear and affected traffic movement in the city. 

Speaking on the building collapse incidents in the national capital, Atul Garg, Director of Delhi Fire Service, told ANI, "We received a total of 15 calls, the highest in a day. It was raining heavily and therefore some old houses or under-construction buildings collapsed...It was unprecedented that we received 15 calls of house collapse.”

Considering the situation in the city, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday instructed all the ministers mayor of Delhi to inspect the problem areas. The Sunday holiday of all the officers across all departments was also cancelled and were ordered to get on the ground to review the situation. 

“Delhi received 126 mm of rain yesterday. 15% of the total rainfall of the monsoon season fell in just 12 hours. People faced problems due to waterlogging. Today all the ministers and mayor of Delhi will inspect the problem areas. Officers of all departments have been instructed to cancel the Sunday holiday and get on the ground,” tweeted Kejriwal. 

Meanwhile, the Indian Meteorological Department has issued a Yellow Alert for Sunday. According to the IMD, Delhi is likely to witness 7.5 mm to 15 mm rainfall which can cause more trouble.