Parents Allege Negligence As 23 Students Injured

HYDERABAD: All the injured were female students — 23 in total. Male students helped them to safety and sustained minor injuries, their parents said.

Parents, distressed over their daughters struggling to breathe in the ICU, alleged that they had received no calls from the college management. Instead, they learnt of the incident from their daughters’ friends.

A total of 23 students were taken to Pratyusha Hospital on Saturday night. Nine were admitted to Yashoda Hospital, Malakpet — two in the ICU, six in the general ward and one in a private hospital.

The list of students treated at Pratyusha Hospital included Murupoozu Anugna, Vaishnavi, Gundala Sushma, Dikishitha Goud, Sania Mohammed, Ramagiri Shravya, Meena Narayanadas, Akshara Reddy, Sonu Narayanadas, Renjarla Spandana, Ananya Santhapuri, Bonagiri Sloka, Sindhu, Akkala Deekshitha, Thanthala Hasani, Kavya Kacham, Tanmaya, Sathvika, Sahana, Sowjanya, Myithili and Tharuni.

Sai G, brother of G. Sushma, broke down while speaking about the incident. “My mother and other family members have been moving between hospitals since yesterday. We do not want to judge whose fault it was. Everyone should have been careful. My sister is in the general ward with injuries to her legs and hands. Doctors said she is doing well and would be discharged soon,” he said.

Outside Yashoda Hospital, Ramaswamy R., father of Shravya R., a second‑year IT student, waited anxiously for his daughter, who was in the ICU. Doctors advised keeping her under observation for 24 hours.

“I asked her to come home on October 16 when the holidays were announced, but she told me there was a Dandiya programme and that she would return after it. She is my second daughter. My eldest is in Mancherial, and my youngest is studying intermediate in Hyderabad. Shravya is a bright student who wants to become a software engineer. She stays in a hostel and has suffered spinal cord and rib injuries, along with a fracture. We are praying for her recovery,” he said.

He alleged that neither he nor his family had received any information from the college management. “My daughter’s friend called and told me she had fallen and suffered injuries. When you are miles away from your child, such news feels like a heavy blow. The institution is responsible, and we want justice,” he said.

Lalitha P, a parent from Srisailam, also alleged that only female students had fallen and sustained injuries. “We have been waiting outside the hospital since last night. The management should have informed us. They sent injured students from the hostel to their homes,” she said.

General physician S. Surendra Reddy and Dr Pratyusha, who treated the students at Pratyusha Hospital, said the injured began arriving around 8 pm on Saturday. “We received students one after another. Nearly 20 arrived on stretchers, accompanied by hundreds of friends and faculty members. We treated them with whatever resources were available. One student who died had suffered a severe head injury. We sutured the wound and stopped the bleeding. Another female student had a leg fracture. We did not waste time and referred those at risk of losing their lives or with major injuries to other hospitals,” they said.

Nine students were shifted to other hospitals, while the remaining patients received treatment until Sunday morning. They were discharged after wardens and representatives arrived to take them back.

The doctors confirmed that the 50‑bed Pratyusha Hospital, operating for six years, does not have a CT scan facility.