Kozhikode: In the quiet corridors of Govt LP School at Palliparamba, in Pang, Malappuram, where children’s laughter and chatter usually linger, grief descended like a heavy silence on Friday evening. For school peon Gopalan, the tragedy unfolded in the most-unbearable way.
When he rushed to the school on hearing about an accident involving his colleagues who were on their way home after a trip to Valparai, a policeman was waiting for him. The officer showed him photographs of his colleagues, who were close to him like family, on his phone. One by one, he identified them, his voice breaking as he read out their names.
“They had asked me to join them on the one-day trip and bring my wife too if possible. As I had other engagements, I told them that I can’t make it this time and asked them to enjoy the trip. I didn’t know that it would end like this,” he said amid tears.
The group of 13 had set out early on Friday morning for a leisure trip to Valparai to see Athirappilly waterfalls and other tourist spots en route in a tempo traveller. By evening, a photo shared in the school’s WhatsApp teachers’ group at 3.56pm captured their final moments of joy. Soon after, their vehicle met with an accident on the winding ghat roads.
The accident claimed the lives of five teachers, including headteacher and Pulamanthole native Ajitha (54), who was just a year away from retirement, Ramla (52), Suhara (43), Asha (41) of Kolathur and Majeed (43). Others killed in the accident were Majeed’s wife Rukiya (39), the school’s cooking staff member Sajitha (45), Suhara’s son Hisham (12) and Shakeena (37), a teacher of Pang GUP school.
Pang GLP school driver Noushad (39), Mohammed Fayis (21) who drove the vehicle and Sajitha’s son Shahadin (11) are undergoing treatment at a hospital in Coimbatore, while injured girl Masnin (10) is being treated at a hospital in Pollachi.
Back at the school, the scale of loss is difficult to comprehend. Most members of the close-knit staff are now gone, leaving just one permanent teacher Asnath and Gopalan, along with two temporary teachers handling the lower kindergarten sections.
“We were a family. They used to share everything – photos, little moments. That last picture shared in the school group at 3.56 pm… it would be the final one,” said Asnath, who had not joined the trip as she was preparing for her Haj pilgrimage.
When news of the tragedy reached Pang, disbelief gave way to collective mourning. The school premises, usually alive with the chatter of children, was filled with stunned residents, parents and former students, many of whom had known the teachers for long. They tried to dial the numbers of their teachers, but the calls went unanswered.
“I saw them during the school anniversary event on April 4. Later, I noticed their WhatsApp status about the trip. That’s how I knew they had gone for a trip. And then came the news,” said Bindu, a resident.
Former Kuruva panchayat president Naseera Mol spoke about the teachers, especially Ajitha, who had approached local authorities for the school’s development. “She led several initiatives, including fitness programmes for students. She was a role model for other teachers,” she said.
Residents said the teachers had conducted a payasam challenge to raise funds for the school’s development. PTA president Ali and family members of the teachers went to Pollachi on hearing about the tragedy. Later, panchayat authorities and several others also left for Pollachi. The bodies of the victims will be kept for public homage at a nearby school before the funeral.
