Greater Noida school students protest, boycott classes after boy’s death

Students accused school of negligence after the hostel resident died of fever

Dozens of students of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) in Greater Noida boycotted school on Tuesday morning over the death of 12-year-old student Aditya Kumar.

Students of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Dadri staged a protest on Tuesday after Aditya Kumar died on Monday evening.

Aditya, along with 500 other students, used to live in a hostel inside the school campus in Dhoom Manikpur village of Dadri tehsil.

The agitated students alleged that Aditya had been suffering from fever since Friday and he died due to negligence shown by school authorities. Aditya passed away at Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, in Delhi, on Monday evening. The reason for his death is still unknown and his body has been sent for post-mortem.

Taking note of the agitation, Gautam Budh Nagar district magistrate NP Singh has asked for a magisterial inquiry regarding the death.

“We have taken note of the protest by students over Aditya’s death. I have asked the sub-divisional magistrate of Dadri to enquire and take strict action against those found guilty,” said Singh.

Aditya, a native of Chhapra in Bihar, had joined JNV in July this year. On Friday evening, he complained of fever from the cold weather and asked the school’s nurse for medication. Students claim that Aditya didn’t receive immediate medical care by the nurse and was taken to the district hospital in Noida only on Sunday when his condition deteriorated.

Students have demanded the removal of Tomar and school vice-principal PS Chauhan. They also alleged that school authorities locked them in the hostel on Monday night fearing a backlash.

“When Aditya was declared dead on Monday evening, the first thing our vice-principal did was to lock us in the hostel so that we are unable to protest. We were kept hungry for the entire night and subsequent morning by the hostel authorities. This is sheer torture and harassment and we demand Tomar and Chauhan be sacked immediately,” said another student.

The police reached the school on Monday evening to calm down the agitated students.

“We are at the hostel since morning, and, after several requests, the students have finally taken their meals. We have not registered any case and investigation is ongoing. Further action will be taken once the post-mortem results are out,” said Anand Mishra, station house office, Badalpur police station.

Aditya’s father is currently on a business trip to Goa and is expected to reach Delhi on Wednesday, while his mother is at the Delhi hospital and has refused to comment.

The school’s principal, GS Tomar, couldn’t be reached for a statement despite several attempts.