Hyderabad: A case of negligence was registered against Eurokids School in Osmannagar after a three-year-old girl suffered a cut on her ear. The injury was allegedly caused by a staff member who was using a pair of scissors to remove a thread tangled in her earring. The child requires plastic surgery, and her parents accused the school of attempting to conceal the true cause of the injury.
The child's father received a call from the school at 9.50 am on August 30, informing him that his daughter had been injured when a thread got stuck in her earring and that she needed immediate medical attention. She was taken to a hospital in Nallagandla, where doctors informed the parents that the cut on her left ear appeared to have been made with a pair of scissors. "Only then did the school admit that the injury was caused by one of their staff members," said the student’s mother.
The incident occurred when a thread from the student’s school bag got tangled in her earring. Seeing her in distress, school staff and faculty members tried to help. A faculty member grabbed a pair of large scissors. While attempting to cut the thread, the helper made a deep cut on the girl's upper ear. “It was sheer negligence by the school for failing to handle a minor issue without harming the child," the student’s mother said.
The mother alleged that the school had not accepted responsibility. "The branch head witnessed the incident and even accompanied us to the hospital, but she is yet to apologise," the mother told Deccan Chronicle.
The student’s suffered a broken cartilage which required plastic surgery. After the parents filed a complaint with the Kollur police, the school arranged a meeting with the district head and showed the CCTV footage of the incident. "The district head apologised and assured us that strict action would be taken against the staff member, but no action has been taken so far," the mother said.
Kollur inspector K. Ravinder said a case of negligence has been registered. Police were awaiting a medical certificate from the hospital. CCTV footage has been collected as evidence.
The student’s mother said the child remained traumatised after the incident and the three-hour surgery that followed. “The school cannot undo the trauma we've experienced. Swift action should be taken to ensure the safety of other children. We demand the immediate closure of the school branch," she added.
The school's district head Surya Ramana said that the services of the staff member and a faculty involved had been terminated. “The child was wearing a fancy earring, which was not allowed in the first place. The staff had intended to cut the strap of the bag which got entangled in her earring. The scissor was also not readily available. We fired the helper and the teacher immediately. Since then, we have organised safety training for our employees. A team from Mumbai flew in to train staff on how to handle such situations. We did try to reach out to the parents but they were reluctant to talk," he told Deccan Chronicle.
