Agricultural labourers Ch. Rama Rao and Lakshmi, who lost their 10-year-old daughter, Swathi, are still awaiting police version on the masked man who knifed the Class V girl to death in the presence of her schoolmates at the mandal parishad primary school in Narsannapeta in Srikakulam district in broad daylight in August last year.

The parents of P. Bhargavanaidu, 9, and P. Ravi Kumar, 8, of a private school in Kotabommali of the same district are also doing so, as the two students were similarly attacked in December last.

Almost six months have passed, but police have not yet traced the man behind the attacks on the three children.

Though locals, including school staff, believe that the attacker was a psycho, police deny the reports.

Police sources revealed that based on the pair of shoes of the attacker, nearly 10 persons including a cobbler were so far taken into custody and are being interrogated.

Sources said that the masked man was about 5.5 feet tall and aged between 35 and 40 years.

He wore black and red clothes in the first incident, and left his shoes in the fields while escaping from the second attack.

During a one-day visit to Srikakulam on Sunday, the deputy inspector general of police for Visakhapatnam range, Ms Soumya Mishra, stated that investigation was on, and special teams were dispatched to trace the culprit.

Speaking to this newspaper, the Srikakulam district educational officer, Mr B. Malleswara Rao, said that apart from regular meetings with government school heads, they held on December 30 an emergency meeting with principals of 497 private schools and clearly instructed them not to allow strangers, even parents, into the school premises during school hours.

They were told to appoint qualified security guards to prevent such incidents.

“The department is ready to take criminal proceedings against the violators,” the the DEO warned.