Kozhikode: Coconut palm falls on boy

Kozhikode: A sixth standard student of Meenchanda Government Higher Secondary School here was killed and two others were injured, one of them seriously, when a coconut tree on the school compound fell on the students on Wednesday afternoon. The deceased Shajeel Ahammed was playing along with his classmate Deexit during lunch break when the tree crashed on the head of the former killing him on the spot, said eyewitnesses. Deexit sustained serious injuries and Anoop, another student, had minor wounds on his legs. They were hospitalised along with three others who fell unconscious while they witnessed the incident.

Shajeel is the son of Khaleel and Jamaila of Arakinar near Meenchanda and Deexit’s father is Deependran of Panniyankara. Anoop belongs to Nadakkavu, police said. The local people, who gathered at the school, alleged that they had earlier requested the school authorities to cut the tree, which was posing a threat to the students. The district education officer, who visited the school, told mediapersons that the tree was apparently healthy. “But now we could see that it did not have proper roots,” she added. She has initiated an inquiry into the matter.

There were not many students near the tree when it came down away from the classroom side, the locals said. Otherwise, there would have been more casualties. Recently, the school authorities had cut down a banyan tree as it had withered. But they overlooked the warning given by the local people about the coconut tree.

The Cabinet has decided to grant Rs 5 lakh in compensation to the family of Shajil Ahmed. As much as Rs 2 lakh will be given to cover the treatment cost of Dikshit, the other child who suffered grievous injuries.