One of the three students, who was injured when the roof of the kitchen in their Panchayat Union Middle School at Ponnanpadukai village collapsed, has lost his right arm.
Selvakumar, a student of class 8, suffered multiple injuries and was admitted to a private hospital in Madurai.
On Thursday, doctors amputated his right hand as the bones were completely crushed, said Chief Educational Officer Renukadevi, who visited the boy. “The other two boys, Eswaran and Muthupandi, who sustained minor injuries, have been discharged from hospital.”
Following this, parents of all students held a protest and said they would not allow their children to study in the school until the dilapidated building was razed down.
They demanded that the government take care of Selvakumar’s medical expenditure.
Officials, including District Educational Officer S. Raghavan and Block Educational Officer Saraswathi, held talks with the parents and assured them that the kitchen building and another old dilapidated structure would be razed down and new ones onstructed after the local body polls.
The parents relented and ended their protest.
The DEO said the district administration paid ₹2 lakh as initial compensation. “Steps will be taken to cover his medical expenses.”
On Tuesday, the students were were playing near the kitchen during lunch hour when the roof of the building suddenly collapsed and fell on them. The building, where the noon meal is prepared, was in bad shape as it was built over 30 years. It was further weakened in the recent rain.
Parents said though they repeatedly demanded demolition of old buildings, no action was taken by authorities.
“This incident is an example of official apathy. Government school buildings, including anganwadis, face the same threat as there is no maintenance. The officials concerned do not inspect and assess the damage to the buildings periodically, said Benito, a rights activist from Theni.
At least now, the government should take stock of such dilapidated buildings in its schools across the State so that such incidents did not occur in future. Also, the judiciary should take up the issue suo moto and direct the government to ensure safety of school buildings, he added.
