On February 25 (Wednesday), a terrible incident unfolded in Rajasthan when a 4-year-old boy was brutally attacked by stray dogs on the very first day of school. The attack took place inside the campus of Swami Vivekananda Model School in Upni hamlet, which is part of Sridungargarh in the Bikaner region. The young child had gone to school with his older brother and was in the classroom for about an hour and a half before the tragedy occurred.

Local residents say that there were no security guards on duty when the incident happened, and the main gate of the school was left open. As a result, several stray dogs were able to walk freely into the school grounds. The boy apparently left his classroom and, as he moved around the campus, was attacked by the dogs. Although he cried out and the animals barked loudly, the school staff were not alerted in time to stop the attack or rush to his aid.

A nearby villager heard the noise and came running. This person managed to pull the child away from the dogs and stop the attack. The boy was then taken to PBM Hospital for urgent medical care. According to the doctors treating him, he suffered very serious injuries. They said that the dogs had bitten through the skin of his scalp, and that these wounds would require multiple plastic surgeries to repair. His ear was also bitten, and he had scratches all over his body.

Medical professionals explained that his treatment will be long and challenging. They noted that the scalp skin may take up to a year to regenerate, and that he could need several surgical procedures, as well as continuous medical monitoring and care, before he fully recovers.

District education officer Kishandan Charan described the situation in detail. He said, “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.” These words highlighted how quickly the attack happened and how easily it might have been prevented.

The villagers are angry and upset after the attack. They have questioned why no measures were taken to protect the children, especially since locals had warned about the problem of stray dogs in the area. Many have pointed out that the school’s main gate should not have been left open, and that there should have been security personnel on site to prevent strangers — two-legged or four-legged — from entering.

The school principal, Subhash Meena, confirmed that the boy had left the classroom to go to the washroom. He also said that there had been previous concerns about aggressive dogs near the school gate, but that no effective action had been taken to address the problem before the attack happened.

Officials at different levels, including the Chief Block Education Officer, the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), and the local police administration, have been informed about the incident and are involved in the ongoing response.

Earlier this year, in January, the government of Rajasthan had issued instructions to all government-run schools in the state to take action against stray dogs on school grounds. In an order from the secondary education department, schools were directed to “immediately arrange for removal of stray dogs from school premises.” Despite this directive, in this case the dogs were still present and able to enter the campus where they caused serious harm to a young child.