Hassan: Hungry Student Begs for Rice – Teacher Flogs her Face
Nina Rai - Daijiworld Media Network Mangalore
Hassan, Aug 30: It is indeed an inhuman act by a teacher, whose duty it is to guide young students and teach them about morality and humanity along with enhancing their knowledge.
A teacher of the government primary school in Kodaramanahalli village of Kattaya Hobli near Hassan, ruthlessly beat up Tulasi, a fourth standard student for asking an extra bowl of rice when food was being served under the “bisi oota” mid-day lunch scheme which is provided by many schools in the interiors of Karnataka, wherein students are provided free lunch by the government.
10 year old Tulsi, a poor student from same village did not have breakfast that morning because her grand mother was not well. By lunch break the poor child was so hungry that she gobbled her food fast, but was still un-satiated as hunger pangs were gnawing within her and so the child requested for some more rice. She made the request to her teacher Shivanna who is in-charge of the mid-day lunch in the school. But Shivanna without showing any remorse for human plight reacted by inhumanly thrashing the hungry child left, right and centre, allegedly for half an hour.
The injured Tulsi did not reveal this incident to her grandmother at home immediately. However, next morning when she was refusing to go to school in pain, her grandma came to know that the teacher had beaten her so badly, that she had bruises all over her body and a cut injury on one of her cheeks. She was then immediately taken to the Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences where she was provided treatment.
Parents have protested the said matter to the deputy director for public instruction (DDPI) Padmamma and informed the journalists about the facts of the case.
After studying the case, the DPI initiated action by suspending the teacher Shivanna. Speaking to the media later, the DDPI Padmamma informed that she had suspended the accused teacher based on the report submitted by the block education officer (BEO) Pushpalata, who personally visited the school, along with the doctor to conduct an inquiry.
The DDPI also said that the departmental inquiry has been ordered into the incident to submit a detail report to the government in this connection. Kindly note this is not the first instance of corporal punishment in school where young children are beaten by teachers in the name of discipline. Recently in Madya Pradesh too a young 12 year old student was so mercilessly beaten by a female teacher that he later died at the hospital due to head injuries. His only crime was that being a tall child he had spread out his leg outside the table during the exams.
In the above matter, F R Jamaadar, Zilla Panchayat chief executive officer on Wednesday 29 August 2007 stated that he had sent circular to all schools in the district directing teachers not to carry canes/sticks with them. Hence if they are found beating students, they would be suspended and criminal cases would be filed against them. Hope this does put an end to barbaric corporal punishments in schools or will it?