Hyderabad
oi-Madhuri Adnal
A student was killed and at least 12 others were injured after a lighting truss collapsed during a Dandiya celebration at MVSR Engineering College in Nadargul, Telangana, on Saturday evening. The structure fell on a group of female students as strong winds swept through the college grounds during the concluding hours of its annual technical and cultural festival, Sangamam.
The deceased was identified as Sony Narayana Das, a student of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) branch. The injured students were rushed to Pratyusha Hospital, while police registered a case against the college management and launched an investigation into the incident.
During a Dandiya celebration at MVSR Engineering College in Telangana on Saturday evening, a lighting truss collapsed due to strong winds, killing student Sony Narayana Das and injuring at least 12 others during the annual Sangamam festival; police are investigating.
Hundreds of students had gathered on the college grounds for the Dandiya programme, organised as part of the two-day Sangamam festival. Technical events were held on Friday, followed by cultural programmes on Saturday.
Accident at MVSR Engineering College, Nadargul!Lighting stand collapses during Dandiya celebrations; ten students injured. An accident occurred during Dandiya celebrations held at MVSR College in Nadargul.Due to strong winds, a lighting stand collapsed onto the students. https://t.co/2gLtkDd3BH
— SRICHARAN SHARMA (@GundiSricharan) October 17, 2026
College director Prasanna Kumar said the Dandiya event had been organised at the request of students and was scheduled between 5.30 pm and 6 pm. However, around 10 minutes before the programme was due to end, strong winds caused one of the lighting stands to collapse on the section where female students were dancing.
“Unfortunately, just 10 minutes before it was about to conclude, a strong gale came. Because of that, the stand supporting the lights could not withstand it, and one of the stands fell in the section where the girl students were dancing,” Kumar said.
He confirmed Sony Narayana Das’s death and said several injured students had been admitted to hospital.
“We had planned to organize a technical-cum-cultural fest called ‘Sangamam,’ which is an annual event. Yesterday was the technical event and today was the cultural event. To conclude the event, based on the interest and request of the students, a Dandiya program was arranged. It was scheduled for the evening, around 5.30 or 6.:00 pm. Unfortunately, just 10 minutes before it was about to conclude, a strong gale came. Because of that, the stand supporting the lights could not withstand it, and one of the stands fell in the section where the girl students were dancing,” he said.
”Unfortunately, we lost one young student, Sony Narayana Das from the EEE branch. About nine students were admitted to the hospital. We acted immediately, using our own vehicles as it was taking some time for 108 to arrive. We promptly shifted them to Pratyusha Hospital, where they received immediate attention. Based on the doctors’ advice, one or two students were taken for CT scans, and those who underwent scans have been declared out of danger. It is a very unfortunate incident. The management is taking care of everything and monitoring the situation, and we will definitely do our best to support the parents,” he further said.
