HC scrutiny on medical preparedness in city’s schools

The boy,a student of the Government Boys Senior Secondary School in New Seemapuri,was allegedly left outside the emergency ward of the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital. It was only after the boy’s parents reached the spot that he was taken to the Guru Nanak Hospital,and later referred to AIIMS,the letter claimed.

The court had earlier sought a detailed response from the government counsel,who submitted on Wednesday that a report from AIIMS was still awaited.

Appointed as amicus curiae in the matter,advocate Ashok Agarwal adduced a 2010 DCPCR report,titled ‘Psycho-physical requirement and medical crisis management in schools’. The report suggested measures for dealing with such crisis in schools,including the constitution of an emergency response team,appointment of doctors (full-time or part-time),inclusion of safety and accident prevention in regular curriculum,a dispensary on the ground floor of the school building,and a database of students and their ailments.

“The government must elaborate on what steps have been taken since this report was published. The safety of school students is of paramount importance,” Agarwal said.

Concurring with his views,the court asked the government counsel to submit a report on the actions taken by it in four weeks,and fixed the matter for February next year.