In the wake of the Beas river tragedy where 24 students were washed away, the Government has asked UGC and AICTE to frame guidelines on enforcing students’ safety when they are on excursion or study trips.

HRD Minister Smriti Irani said in the Lok Sabha today that the two regulators — the University Grants Commission and the All India Council for Technical Education — have been asked by the Government to frame the guidelines.

Irani said upon hearing news of the incident, she got in touch with the Himachal Pradesh Government to ensure prompt rescue operations.

Irani said she had visited the site of the accident immediately and not only offered to bear the cost of the operations but also extended assistance required in deploying the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, the Sashastra Seema Bal, the National Disaster Response Force, divers and rescue teams from the Navy and Army.

She said the Governments of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana also deputed their ministers and officers to the site of the accident to monitor the search and rescue operation carried out by various state and central agencies under the coordination of the Himachal Pradesh Government and the local administration.

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