Words of solace were insufficient for Rajesh D. Nair, who lost his only daughter Diya in the tourist bus crash that shocked the whole State on Thursday. Ministers K. Krishnankutty and M.B. Rajesh and V.K. Sreekandan, MP, did their best to console him as he sobbed out his pain and anger by the side of his daughter’s body at the District Hospital here.
“Study tours have given way for jolly excursions these days. There should be a restriction on them,” whimpered Mr. Nair. He was angry with the authorities of Baselios Vidyanikethan Senior Secondary School, Vettikkad, for poor communication in the wake of the midnight accident.
Like most parents of the school, Mr. Nair from Mulanthuruthy too woke up at midnight to learn that his Class 10 daughter was seriously injured after their school bus got involved in a road crash. His attempts to know more about his daughter’s condition were met with a cold response from the school officials.
After confirming the accident from the TV as well as social media, Mr. Nair rushed to the Mulanthuruthy police station, where he got to know the hardest news of his life. “We spoke to Diya last at 11 p.m. on Wednesday before going to bed. And we woke up in an hour or so to learn that she was dead.”
A contract worker at the Cochin Shipyard, Mr. Rajesh said the school authorities had failed in giving information to the worried parents after the accident. He said they behaved irresponsibly.
The Ministers assuaged his anger by assuring him that everything possible would be done to ensure that such accidents caused by negligence do not occur again.
