PALAKKAD: In a remarkable display of courage and presence of mind, Muhammad Zidan, a Class 5 student of Kalladi Abdu Haji HSS, Kottoppadam, saved the lives of his classmate Muhammad Rajih and a senior student, Shahjaz, after they suffered electric shocks from a live fuse.
His timely intervention earned him praise from Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty and Education Minister K Sivankutty, who conveyed their appreciation over the phone, while teachers, PTA members, and the entire village lauded his heroic action.
Here’s how the brave act unfolded: Zidan, Rajih, and Shahjaz, a Class 7 student, were waiting for the school bus on Thursday morning. They began playing with a plastic container they found on the roadside. One hard kick sent the container beyond the adjacent wall.
Rajih tried to climb the wall to retrieve it, but he slipped and lost footing. In a desperate effort to prevent himself from falling, he tried to hold on to an electric post nearby. Unfortunately, he touched the live fuse on the post.
Shahjaz, the senior student, unaware of the danger, tried to pull Rajih down by grabbing his shoe. He received a minor shock but was unharmed as his hand recoiled. Acting quickly, Zidan picked up a stick lying nearby and struck Rajih twice, but that didn’t work.
On the third attempt, though, Rajih let go of the fuse and fell to the ground. “I panicked initially. But I recalled my mother telling me that hitting someone who has been electrocuted with a stick can save them. I acted accordingly,” Zidan said.
Recollecting a recent incident, he continued, “Ten days back, my mother received a shock while charging her phone. At that time, my grandmother used a wooden stick to save her.”
A motorcyclist passing by, alerted by the boys, helped lift Rajih from the ground. After a few seconds, Rajih began to speak. He was soon rushed to the hospital.
On learning about the incident, the teachers organised a function to felicitate Zidan, under the leadership of the PTA and staff council. Minister for Electricity K Krishnankutty called Zidan and the school principal, M P Sadiq, to congratulate them.