About 30 girl students were allegedly brutally beaten up by their teacher on Friday out of which one had to be hospitalized. The incident took place at a school in Munnanur village of Amrabad mandal in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool district.
The accused, Kalyani, an English teacher in Kasturba Ashram School in the village apparently beat up the students because they performed poorly in an English test. The school authority without delay suspended the teacher on Saturday.
According to the police, one of the students was admitted to a government hospital in the district after suffering injuries on her hands and leg, while 29 students suffered minor injuries.
“Only one of the families came forward to file a complaint against the teacher. All the students were studying in Class 10, and secured poor marks in the class unit test,” said Srinivas, Inspector of Amrabad police station.
“I have received information that eight students fainted when they were beaten up. Even though the teacher has been suspended, this is a serious issue – she should have been arrested by now,” said Achyuta Rao, a member of the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights and a child-rights activist as per The New Minute reports.
According to a survey conducted in 2015 on 3,000 children across the country, aged between five and 18, found that nearly 65% of the children reported being beaten at school by the teachers.
In 2013, Hyderabad had witnessed over 500 cases of corporal punishment despite the ban.
“We get complaints of at least two incidents of corporal punishment every day. This not only affects the children physically but also mentally. The physical injuries one can see, but not the mental injuries. This can push them towards depression also. And not just corporal punishment, the behaviour of the teachers towards students also matters a lot. They should be more sensitive,” said Achyuta Rao.
He added, “In January alone, five student suicides have been registered due to the harsh behaviour of teachers in Telangana . In 2016, we have received more than 300 such complaints.”
It is to be noted that in most of these cases, the teacher is only arrested or suspended for a while which should be alternated to a stricter punishment, he added.
“For this case too, 30 students were beaten up, and the teacher has just been suspended. No action has been taken,” he said.
“We have registered a case under Section 324 of the Indian Penal Code and 75 of Juvenile Justice Act against the teacher. But we haven’t arrested the teacher yet,” said the inspector.
