Atrocities of nationwide strike: Teachers locked inside school till evening; dilemma over eye donation

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The disruption of the KSRTC courier service due to the nationwide strike put the transfer of corneas for eye donation surgery in a dilemma. The corneas were sent as parcels from a hospital in Angamaly to the Thiruvananthapuram General Hospital.

The surgery is scheduled on Saturday, but to prevent any damage, the corneas must be stored in a special system within a specified time. Hospital staff arrived at the courier centre at 8 am to pick up the parcel containing the organ, but were shocked to see no one present. The staff on duty were forced to leave due to strike action. The cornea should have been delivered to the hospital before 10 am.

The General Hospital RMO and the Museum CI intervened. The employees who had returned home were called back, the courier centre was opened in the presence of the police, and the parcel was delivered. The first eye surgery at the General Hospital, performed two weeks ago, was a success.

At Nedumangad Government Girls Higher Secondary School, women teachers were locked inside the school by strike supporters. They were only released in the evening. Four teachers from the higher secondary section and four teachers from the high school section were the victims of the protestors' violence. Five of the teachers were women.

Although the main gate was locked, 11 teachers entered the school through a nearby small gate in the morning. When the protesters arrived and requested them to comply with the strike, three teachers agreed and returned. Angered by the others' refusal to return, the gang locked the main gate. The teachers could not sign the register because the school office was closed. The principal and headmaster were not present.

By 4 pm, the protesters came adn opened the gate, releasing the teachers. A few school staff members came to console the teachers. Various teachers' organisations have come forward to protest the incident.