National

Principal canes herself to mend ways of wards

Idukki: Taking teacher-pupil relations to new heights, principal of a local school caned herself to make an emotional impact on her students to extract confession from a boy, who had stolen the prize money won by his schoolmates in a sports meet.

Meenakshikutty Amma of the Model Residential School at Painavu took the extreme step of beating herself after her initial request to the students to come clean on the matter did not bear fruit on Wednesday.

As soon as the theft of money from the school hostel was reported, she convened a meeting of senior boys where she announced that she would beat herself as a punishment until the culprit came forward and admitted the guilt.

As she kept on beating herself with a cane, students turned emotional and pleaded with her not to punish herself for the mistake of others.

The students even refused to disperse for lunch unless she stopped punishing herself. In the end, her “new model” of handling students paid off as one boy came forward admitting that he had taken the money.

He also promised that he would never repeat the mistake. — PTI.

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