27 Schoolchildren Saved from Rising River Waters in Gorubathan

YOWAN MOTHAY, EOI, KALIMPONG, JULY 2, 2024 : At least 27 school students had a miraculous escape on Tuesday morning when the vehicle carrying the students fell into the Upper Fagu river at a stretch where there is no bridge. 

With the monsoon getting worse by the day and overnight heavy rain, the students of Judhabir Higher Secondary School of Gorubathan under the Kalimpong district survived by sheer luck. The 27 students of Farsitar Forest Settlement under the Pokhreybung Gram Panchayat left for school in the morning in a pick-up van as usual. But when the vehicle was about to cross the Fagu river as usual, the vehicle suddenly slipped into deep water. 

After reaching the middle of the river, the vehicle could not move forward. The water level in the river was rising due to continuous rain. With the water level in the river rising rapidly and the vehicle having stuck in the river, it was an alarming situation. 

In the midst of this situation, the attendants in the vehicle carried the students back across the river regardless of the rising level of water. According to a student named Nani, it was around 8 am when the pickup van reached the river. “The vehicle was crossing the river. The pickup van stopped suddenly. No matter how hard the driver of the vehicle tried, the vehicle could not move.

Flood water was rising in the river. We got scared and started crying. At that time, attendants in the pickup van took us out. We could not go to school because we could not cross the river and had to return home.”

Residents of all the villages of Pokhreybung Gram Panchayat in Gorubathan, including Farsitar, students from Puttherjhora under the Jalpaiguri district, travel daily through this road to attend the Monday market and different schools, including Juddhabir in Malbusty. They have to cross rivers Fagu and Gurjung along the way. But since there is no bridge over either of the rivers, it becomes a risky venture; especially in the rainy season.

(KN: Corrections made in the names of places etc.)