The recent fire incident at the girls’ hostel of Monggar Higher Secondary School has called for proper fire safety measures in schools. It was found that the school’s hostels did not have any such precautions in place and its electrical lines were in need of a major facelift.
Some girls staying in the hostel suspect the fire to have started from one of the tube lights. They claimed that there was a damaged tube light in the unit the fire damaged.
“I think the fire started from the tube light. Last time, when our captains went to change the bulbs, they found a malfunctioning tube light. So maybe that’s from where the fire started. After the incident, we learned that the fire started from the edge of the tube light and not from a socket,” said Tashi Yangzom, a student of Monggar HSS.
“The structure is too old and the electrical system wasn’t in a good condition. We the captains and the matron tried to fix the issues related to lights in the hostel but we couldn’t fix them all. Every time we face an electrical problem, we report it to the school captain and the matron. Since we have a separate hostel budget, we replace the damaged bulbs and tube lights ourselves with instruction from the matron,” said Pema Choden another student.
The fire on 17th May completely damaged a unit of the girls’ hostel. The incident ignited a fiery discussion online with some questioning the condition of its electrical lines since the hostel was built in 1983.
Meanwhile, it was found that some sockets, switch boxes and electrical wires in the four-unit boys’ hostel were damaged. According to the students, it is high time the school management looks into the matter.
“When the school was first established, there might not have been a good electrification system. So now, if the faulty lines and parts were fixed, we might have prevented the recent fire incident,” said Tshewang Thinley, a student of Monggar HSS.
“Some switch boxes in the hostel are in a good condition but others are damaged. The tube lights are working but some wires towards the end of the room need repair. The electrical lines in the boys’ hostel should also be relooked to avoid fire or other accidents,” added Sonam Penjor, another student.
The school’s principal said the electrical system is maintained whenever required. However, no one reported the damaged tube light in the girls’ hostel to the management.
“If they had the problem associated with that maybe we should consider that as the cause. As far as the management is concerned, we do have the system wherein the respective in charges or the prefix report to the school management so that the school management carry out the maintenance instantly or depending on the time that is available. So as per the record, we do not have anybody who has reported about malfunction of the electricity in the girls’ hostel,” said Kinga Rinchen, the Principal.
He added, at the moment, the school management does not have the budget to carry out a major renovation of the school’s electrical lines:
“As and when we need, we do definitely attend to the call especially such as replacing the bulbs, tubes and small repair and maintenance of the electrical linings but as such the major renovation of the electrical lines in the school so far has not been carried out. But the minor maintenance of the same I believe is carried out in the fiscal year 2013 and 2014.”
The principal, however, acknowledged the need for fire safety measures in schools and the importance of preparing students for fire disasters.
“Especially when it comes to the disaster, we are just focusing now on the earthquake, earthquake safety drills and all. So we may have to give education on fire safety and that’s in the pipeline. We are already thinking that if not for all the students, we will at least try to provide this education. Like if we have the fire extinguisher, I think those individuals who reside should know how to make use of it,” he added.
The recent fire incident has come as a reminder to have proper fire safety measures in schools. And going by what many observers said, the problem is not isolated to just one school in the country.
For Sonam Tshering, Monggar
