4-year-old boy mauled by dog at Bikaner govt school in Rajasthan; security lapses flagged

JAIPUR: A four-year-old boy was severely injured in an attack by a stray dog Tuesday at Swami Vivekananda Model Govt School in Upni village in Bikaner, officials said. The boy, Ramu, son of Ram Pratap Singh, was not enrolled in the school and had come to school with his elder brother who studies in class 1, officials said.

Officials said that the boy came to school with his elder brother as both parents are farmers and the boy would be alone at home.


"The boy was severely injured with the skin on the scalp scratched completely in the incident and was immediately rushed to PBM Hospital in Bikaner. His condition is stable now, but he is under observation. The school gate was open, and the stray dog entered when the boy had gone to drink water and ran towards the gate," said Kishandan Charan, district education officer for elementary education.

On Wednesday, villagers gathered outside the school and accused the school administration of negligence. They questioned why the main gate was not closed and why there was no guard at the gate.

This was the second such incident reported from a govt school in the state this month. On Feb 12, a 9-year-old girl was critically injured after being mauled by a pack of stray dogs during lunch break at a govt school in Bundi district.

In Jan, Rajasthan govt ordered govt-run schools to prevent stray dogs from entering campuses. The order, issued by the secondary education department, directed all govt schools to "immediately arrange for removal of stray dogs from school premises".