TNAU meet in memory of victims

By R. K. Radhakrishnan

CHENNAI, FEB. 1. The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, is organising a meeting on February 2, in memory of the three students, who were charred to death with their bus at Dharmapuri.

Portraits of the three students will be unveiled at a simple function for which the families of the three have been invited.

It was on this day a year ago, three women undergraduates of the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) - Hemalatha of Chennai, V. Gayathri of Vridhachalam and Kokila of Namakkal - were charred to death and several others injured in a bizarre incident of arson. Sixteen other girl students including three who suffered burn injuries.

``The University invited us a few days ago. But since then, everyone in my family has been saying they will not be able to take it,'' says Mr. Kesava Chandran, Hemalatha's father, an assistant manager with the Indian Bank here.

``It took a lot of persuasion on my part for them to agree to come for the function. I still wake up thinking of the tragedy. But we have to face the reality,'' adds the bank officer, who left for Coimbatore with his family.

The `reality' began to sink in after the ``noise'' surrounding the issue subsided and after most of their relatives from the large joint- family left to take hold of their own lives. ``For a while we did not know anything. Almost the entire family from Kolathur village in Perambulur district had come here. But after they left, it was left to us to come to terms with the truth,'' he says.

As the facts were sinking in came a series of misfortunes for the family. Kesava Chandran himself fell of his scooter near Jaferkhanpet; his wife and one of his daughters had to be hospitalised. ``It all came in a deluge. Each incident seems to push us farther into sorrow. All at home keep thinking that Hemalatha's untimely demise brought the family a lot of ill- luck,'' he adds.

``I hope this trip to Coimbatore helps to make a difference... That we will somehow manage to come out of all this,'' he says.

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Section  : Southern States
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