Ahmedabad: An eight-year-old girl studying in Class 3 died of a suspected cardiac arrest in her school in Ahmedabad city of Gujarat on Friday, officials said. The incident occurred in Zebar School for Children located in Thaltej area in the morning, following which the police launched a probe to know the exact reason behind her death, they said.

“The girl, Gargi Ranpara, fell unconscious soon after she sat on a chair in the lobby while going towards her classroom in the morning,” principal of the school, Sharmishtha Sinha, said. In the CCTV video shared by the school management, the girl can be seen walking in the lobby and going towards her classroom. But on her way, she sits on a chair in the lobby due to uneasiness. She can later be seen sliding from the chair after getting unconscious in the presence of teachers and other students there.

“Gargi was normal when she arrived at the school in the morning. When she was going towards her classroom on the first floor, she sat on a chair in the corridor but suddenly fell unconscious. Since she was experiencing difficulty in breathing, our teachers gave her CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and called an ambulance,” Sinha said. But considering the girl’s serious health condition, the staff decided to take her to a nearby private hospital in their own vehicle, she said.

“Doctors there told us that Gargi had suffered a cardiac arrest. They tried to revive her and also kept her on a ventilator support, but she could not survive,” she added. After coming to know about the girl’s death, the local police rushed to the spot and launched a probe.

“We received a call from the hospital that a school student has died after being admitted. We have launched an investigation from our side and sent her body for postmortem to know the exact cause of her death,” Joint Commissioner of Police, Sector-1, Neeraj Badgujar, said.