“Our school has been washed away, and eight students are missing. We don’t know where we will study or how we will participate in the tournaments scheduled for September,” lament the distraught students of Government Senior Secondary School, Samej, who are struggling to come to terms with the devastating incident.
“Eight girls from the school were members of the volleyball and badminton teams, but three of them are no longer with us. I don’t know how we will participate in the tournaments slated for September 15,” said Aditi, a class 10 student.
“We used to play, study, and spend time together, but my friends Aruti and Arun are not with us,” said Ashwani Kumar, a class 9 student, who fondly remembered his friends.
Another class 9 student, Aman, expressed similar sentiments about Aruti and Arun.
Recalling the harrowing incident, physical education teacher Ravinder, whose room was just a two-minute walk from the school, said, “I heard the deafening sound and rushed towards the school. I rescued the chowkidar, Dhyan Chand, and one student, but I could not save the other eight students as the gushing floodwaters swallowed the school in no time.”
“There are 72 students in the school, and the eight students who were swept away were from Class 9, 10, and Plus Two. All of them were very good in studies and sports,” he added.
