COIMBATORE: A 17-year-old boy studying in a private school sustained a spinal cord injury after falling from a tree. The incident occurred at his school premises near Periyanaickenpakayam, after the hostel warden allegedly forced him to climb a tree to break wood for cooking purposes, as the hostel had run out of LPG.
The boy, M Nandhakumar, of G Kavundampalayam in Coimbatore, is a Class 12 student studying in the school by staying in the school's hostel.
Police said, on March 19 around 11 am, the hostel warden, Rajkumar, allegedly involved students from the hostel to collect wood for cooking purposes due to unavailability of LPG in the hostel kitchen.
Rajkumar instructed Nandhakumar to climb on a tree situated in the campus, to break withered branches when he allegedly fell down from the tree which was over 20-feet in height and sustained a spinal cord injury. He was taken to a private hospital at Jothipuram where he is undergoing treatment.
Based on a complaint by the boy's mother, Periyanaickenpalayam police registered a case against Rajkumar for allegedly involving the student and endangering his life.
"When the warden invited him to collect wood, he refused to go saying he felt tired. However, the warden forced him to get involved in the work and made him climb on a tree. After the incident, they took him to a private hospital for treatment. He has suffered a fracture in spinal cord.
The school management did not turn up at the hospital. So far, we have spent nearly `1 lakh for the treatment. He cannot sit or stand for six months and will also not be able to attend his final computer science exam to be held on March 26," said Jothimani, the boy's mother. She urged the authorities to take action against the school management.