A student was killed and 15 others suffered minor injuries after a lighting frame collapsed during a Dandiya event at MVSR Engineering College in Nadargul, Hyderabad, on October 17, police said. More than 600 students were present at the venue when the incident occurred at around 7.30 pm.
The deceased, identified by police as 18-year-old Sona, was an engineering student at the college. Police said she was crushed under the frame and sustained fatal head injuries. The 15 injured people suffered minor injuries, according to officers quoted by The Indian Express.
Adibatla Inspector S Ramesh said the lighting arrangement had been erected on a rectangular frame. “There was wind, and it didn’t survive the impact. The frame fell immediately, killing the student,” he told The Indian Express.
The collapse occurred during the Dandiya programme, which was being held on the college campus as part of Navaratri celebrations. The incident brought into focus the safety arrangements required for temporary structures and large gatherings held at educational institutions and other public venues.
When asked whether the college had permission to conduct the event, local police said it was being held within the college campus. However, Shamshabad Deputy Commissioner of Police B Rajesh said the organisers should have informed the police about the size of the gathering. “They should have at least intimated the police about this massive crowd,” he told The Indian Express.
The police statements indicate that crowd size and temporary event infrastructure are central to the inquiry into the accident. The lighting frame was installed for the celebration, and officers said wind caused it to fail. The supplied report did not provide details about the frame’s design, installation contractor, structural inspection, anchoring or whether event-specific safety checks had been carried out before the programme.
Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy expressed condolences to the family of the deceased and said stringent action would be taken against those responsible for the accident. He also assured the injured students that they would receive the best medical care.
The police and state authorities are expected to establish responsibility for the collapse and examine the arrangements made for the event. Further details about any case registered, the organiser’s permissions and the condition of those injured were not available in the supplied report.
