Unwilling to attend physical classes, 14-year-old girl in Odisha commits suicide

The girl was a Class X student of Satiguda Government Girls’ High School.
Image used for representational purpose only.
Image used for representational purpose only.

MALKANGIRI: A 14-year-old girl of Bhimarangini village within Malkangiri police limits allegedly committed suicide after being forced by her parents to attend physical classes following reopening of her residential school.

The girl was a Class X student of Satiguda Government Girls’ High School. She consumed pesticide and was admitted to the hospital where she succumbed on Saturday.

Sources said after the State government ordered reopening of schools earlier this month, the girl’s parents were pestering her to attend physical classes. However, she was reluctant to go to the school. On Friday noon, she consumed pesticide kept in the house. On finding their daughter unconscious, her parents rushed her to the district headquarters hospital. However, she died during treatment.

The girl’s father said after the reopening order of the government, he wanted to drop his daughter at her residential school. But she was unwilling to leave home.

“My daughter was suffering from serious health complications and used to vomit blood frequently. I had already spent around `4 lakh on her treatment but she would never pay heed to my advice. When I asked her to join school, she was hesitant,” he informed.

Malkangiri IIC Rigan Kindo said the girl’s father lodged a complaint with police in which he stated that his daughter consumed pesticide after being repeatedly told to attend classes in school. Basing on the complaint, police have registered an unnatural death case.

After remaining closed for almost two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as per government notification, schools were to reopen for students of Classes VIII to XII on February 7 but later the date of reopening was postponed.

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