# Orissa HC seeks report on school safety audits after deaths 2026-08-19T19:11:47+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Orissa High Court has directed the state government to strictly implement safety guidelines and submit a compliance report, expressing concern over recurring deaths and injuries of school children due to collapsing structures on government school premises. A division bench of Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice Chittaranjan Dash issued the order while hearing a PIL filed by activist Prabir Kumar Das. The court noted that incidents include the death of Class III student Premanand Bhatara in Koraput on December 17, 2025, after a concrete plaque collapsed, and the death of a Class I student in Mayurbhanj two days later. In Gajapati, two students died on April 15 after a school gate wall collapsed. The state submitted that the Odisha School Education Programme Authority had issued instructions to collectors on August 1 for school safety audits. The court took the instructions on record and directed authorities to act strictly and report on steps taken. The next hearing is on September 3. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The court's intervention follows a pattern of infrastructure failures in Odisha government schools, where years of neglect have left buildings unmaintained. While compensation has been paid, the bench's emphasis on preventive audits shifts focus to systemic accountability. The August 1 directive to collectors is the key implementation lever, the September 3 hearing will test whether the state can demonstrate concrete action beyond circulars. The real test will be whether safety audits are conducted, results made public, and repairs funded. With the school year under way, each week of delay carries risk for lakhs of students in ageing government buildings. ## Coverage - newindianexpress.com Straight court-reporting: leads with the High Court order, quotes the bench, lists incidents without embellishment or editorialising. This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Harish Tandon, Koraput, Odisha School Education Programme Authority, Orissa High Court Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/orissa-hc-seeks-report-on-school-safety-audits-after-deaths/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/orissa-hc-seeks-report-on-school-safety-audits-after-deaths/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/