Chennai: Four-year-old Abhisheth, a student at a Kidzee Play School in Pallavaram, was not his regular self when his mother went to pick him up after school on Wednesday. “I noticed him constantly pulling up his trousers and when I checked, I saw that his leg was burnt,” said his mother, Asha, a Professor at Hindustan College and resident of RK Avenue. Curious and upset as to what may have happened, she questioned 16-year-old maid who had come for her evening duty (post 5 pm), and she claimed to have no knowledge of the same. “There was no teacher or caretaker there and I could not find out further details,” she added.
The little boy, who was in tears due to the pain, was unable to explain what happened. “All he said was that one aunt had done that and identified her from various photos,” said the father of the child, Subhas, a software engineer. Though the caretakers in the school claimed that they had not seen the wound when they changed his clothes post lunch, the parents are sure it took place in school. “We checked with a doctor who confirmed that it was a burn injury,” added the father.
Stating that it is a complete breach of trust on the play school’s part, child rights activist Andrew Sesuraj said, “It is the responsibility of the school to ensure that the child is in the care of a teacher until his / her parents arrive. Also, the school failed to ensure the provision of first aid.” He said that the caretaker, when contacted, said that she had seen the wound, but failed to inform the parents immediately in order to avoid panic. “The school was either trying to brush aside the matter to hide their carelessness or they were the cause of the child’s injury,” he said. Having filed a complaint with the police and taken it up with a child helpline, the parents are awaiting action against the school. Coordinator of the Kidzee centre, Preethi, was unreachable when Deccan Chronicle tried to contact her.
