The deceased and three others were installing a flex board for Sports Day when an overhead steel frame came in contact with a live wire.
People staging protest at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) in Kusumanchi Mandal of Telangana's Khammam district after a student got electrocuted. (Supplied)
The principal of the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) in the Kusumanchi Mandal of Telangana’s Khammam district was suspended after a 16-year-old student died due to an electric shock while a flex board was being installed on the campus around 5.30 pm on Sunday, 30 July.
Hyderabad Region Deputy Commissioner of the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS), T Gopala Krishna, issued the order for Principal Chandra Babu’s suspension during the late evening hours on Saturday.
The deceased was identified as Durga Nagendra, a Class 12 student.
Three other students — Kumar, Eshwar, and Shiva — accompanying Nagendra in erecting the board survived the incident and sustained minor injuries.
Kusumanchi Police Station Circle Inspector Jithender Reddy told South First, “When the four boys were setting up a flex board around evening, the steel frame above it came in contact with an electrical wire and led to the electrocution of Durga Nagendra.”
He added that Durga Nagendra, along with three other students, had been directed by the institution authorities to set up the flex board for the upcoming Sports Day, which was scheduled for 2 August.
The sudden demise of Nagendra sparked outrage among members of his family, who accused Principal Chandra Babu of negligence.
The grieving family demanded justice for the boy’s death. Along with various student organisations, staged a protest on the institution premises right after the news of the incident spread.
“The protesters vented their anger by vandalising windows and a few chairs on the school premises,” said the CI.
Following the intense protests, the authorities responded with swift action and suspended the principal.
He was reportedly transferred to the NVS regional office with immediate affected, pending further investigation into the tragic incident.
The Kusumanchi police registered a case under IPC Section 304 (2) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) against Chandra Babu, the sports teacher, and the arts and craft teacher.
A 17-year-old boy named Mohammed Hassan had come into contact with the 1,400-volt transformer and suffered 50 per cent burns at Meridian School in Hyderabad’s Banjara Hills on 26 June.
The school subsequently came under fire for allegedly backtracking on its initial commitment to cover Hassan’s medical expenses.
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
May 21, 2024
