Schools and colleges in Nepal often take their students to various places on educational tours and outings. Students actively take part in and enjoy such events as they get a break from their regular curricular activities.

A few days ago, a college student lost her life during one such event on the outskirts of Kathmandu.

Family members and relatives of the deceased have accused the college management of negligence while officials from the educational institution say that they couldn’t avert the tragedy despite doing everything possible to save her. Police have been investigating the case.

“The negligence of Xavier International College, Boudha Tusal ended the life of my 19-year-old niece, Gungun Tamang,” Bina Theeng Tamang, a poet and writer, wrote on Facebook on December 25.

On December 23, Xavier International College took 63 students pursuing Bachelor’s degrees to Scout Hill in Kakani, over 15 kilometres northwest of Balaju, for orientation. That night, they had a campfire, and Gungun Tamang, a Bachelor of Business Studies (BBS) student, suddenly fainted while enjoying the company of her friends.

“The college had signed the consent letter to the parents about the orientation programme, but they did not do a timely rescue to save the life of my niece,” Tamang said. Gungun had no health issues before that, according to Tamang.

A Xavier International student who participated in the outing also accused the teachers of not promptly rushing her to the hospital. After Gungun fainted, the teachers took her to a room, made her sleep, and left her in the presence of her friend, the student said. Then, they rejoined the campfire.

A few students pursuing a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree said the teacher did not consider cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), but some students did. “Only after one of our friends made a video call to his home and consulted with a family member, who is a medical person, were we suggested to take Gungun immediately to the hospital, as her condition was critical,” one of the students told the Post on the condition of anonymity.

“Only after we conveyed this to our teachers did they show concern.”

According to the students, the college did not have its vehicle there, so the teachers first tried to find a vehicle to rescue her, but it took time to do so.

An Armed Police Force United Nations Peacekeeping Training School is near Scout Hill in Kakani. The school staff initially thought about taking Gungun there on a motorbike. However, another student who had participated in the orientation programme said that since Gungun was unconscious, it was not possible for her to ride pillion.

The teachers managed a vehicle from the Armed Police Force and two medical personnel of the Police team to take Gungun to Green City Hospital in Samakhushi. According to hospital records obtained by the Post, by the time she was brought to the hospital, it was 10:40 at night. The hospital declared the patient ‘brought dead’. Though she fainted around 8:30 in the evening, the college staff didn’t rescue her immediately, the students allege.

She could have probably been saved had the teachers shown immediate concern and made necessary arrangements promptly, the students the Post spoke to said.

A student said the college had around 10 staff members for the outing, including teachers and other supporting staff.

According to Gungun’s postmortem report, she didn’t suffer a stroke or a heart attack, and the report claims it was a natural death. However, the family members decry the college’s negligence.

“She must have fainted due to the fluctuating temperature, and we also learned that while burning a fire, the college staff had used turpentine oil, which is injurious to health,” Tamang said. “My niece died at such a young age for a lack of timely treatment.”

However, college coordinator Rajesh Nepal denies using turpentine oil to burn fire. He, however, acknowledges burning plastics. “We had used plastics to light the firewood,” Nepal said.

Burning turpentine oil or plastic is injurious to health, says Binjawala Shrestha, a public health expert. “However, in Gungun’s case, I cannot give my definite opinion without studying the case in detail,” Shrestha says.

On December 26, Gungun’s family members filed a case against the college with the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of the Nepal Police.

College officials have denied the allegations. Nepal, the college coordinator, said it is natural for family members to blame the college staff for their loss. “We understand they are in pain,” Nepal said. “However, we as college staff did all we could to save her life… Within 2-3 hours of the incident, we brought her to the hospital. I had come with the police medical team to the hospital, bringing Gungun. It took us some time to make full arrangements since the college did not have its vehicle on standby.”

Nepal Police Spokesperson Bishwa Adhikari says that death cases of students while on education tours are reported often. However, the number is not that big, he said.

For people working in the education sector, taking students on a field trip for educational purposes is not conceptually wrong. However, educational institutions should obtain parental consent before doing so, they say. Parents and educational institutions should also share the students' health histories, but there is a lack of such practices, according to them.

“Parents should send their children to such programmes only after confirming that the safety measures are properly followed,” said Medini Lamichhane, an education expert. “And educational institutions along with parents should be aware of the students’ health history so they can properly take care of them in case of emergency.”

Lamichhane added that the education sector in the country lacks proper regulations on this issue, and it is high time a policy is formulated.