Child Dies At Unregistered Play School In Haryana; High Court Seeks State's Report On Safety Norms, Name Of Officer Responsible

Taking serious note of the death of a child at an unregistered play school in Haryana, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has sought a detailed report from the State Government regarding the safety norms applicable to such institutions.

The Court has also directed the State to disclose the name and designation of the officer responsible for ensuring compliance with regulations governing play schools.

Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sanjiv Berry today while perusing the response filed by the Haryana Government, pointed that it does not disclose the name of the officer responsible for ensuring compliance of norms by the Play Schools. "No strict guidelines are there", said the bench.

While directing the Haryana Government to file an additional affidavit on the above point, the Court impleaded National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in the case.

The Court was hearing a suo-moto case over death of a 4-year-old child at an unregistered play school in Haryana's Sirsa.

In an administrative order the Chief Justice noted that, "A news item (Annexure 'A') with caption "Unregistered playschool under fire after 4-years old boy dies in Sirsa" has appeared in the newspaper 'The Sunday Tribune, Chandigarh Edition' on 06.07.2025 highlighting that a four-year old child namely Armaan has died due to administrative negligence at an unregistered playschool in Mamera Kalan Village in Sirsa,."

According to the newspaper article, the death of four-year-old Armaan at an unregistered playschool in Mamera Kalan village, Sirsa, has triggered an investigation and exposed administrative negligence. "The Small Wonder Play School, where the incident occurred, was found to be operating without a government registration or basic safety measures," the article read.

Title: COURT ON ITS OWN MOTION V/S STATE OF HARYANA THROUGH ITS CHIEF SECY., HARYANA CIVIL