The Hindu : National : They are happy but also sad

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Thursday, Nov 16, 2006
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National

They are happy but also sad

K.N. Murali Sankar

Durga Doondeswar and Teja Sai were drowned in Munneru rivulet after they saved 6 students

— PHOTO: RAJU. V.

EMOTIONAL MOMENT: V. Durga Malleswara Rao, father of Teja Sai, (right) at his residence in Vijayawada.

VIJAYAWADA: They are happy, but sad. They are proud, yet helpless. Caught in an oxymoronic situation, the families of the two boys, who were chosen for the bravery awards posthumously, are now coming to terms with the reality.

``I now repent that I made a mistake by allowing my son to learn swimming. Had he not been able to swim, he would have been alive today,'' says C.V.S. Dwarakanath, father of C.V.S. Durga Doondeswar.

``Severe punishment to the school correspondent will be a bigger award for us than this. He is solely responsible for the great tragedy in our life," feels V. Durga Malleswara Rao, father of V. Teja Sai.

These two boys were among the 15 children who were drowned in Munneru rivulet in a picnic tragedy on November 27, 2005. Even without thinking about their own safety, Doondeswar and Teja Sai saved the lives of six of their schoolmates.

The tragedy occurred when the management of the city-based Ravindra Bharati English Medium School arranged for a picnic to a mango garden on the banks of the Munneru at Keesara.

Speaking to The Hindu on Tuesday, Mr. Dwarakanath, a lab technician in the Government General Hospital here, recalled the multiple talents of Doondeswar. ``He might have ventured into the rivulet confident that he could swim back safely to the shore. His confidence made him save three lives and win the award. But our misfortune took him away from us," he said.

Doondeswar's mother Bhramaramba is yet to recover from the shock. ``She is still preparing lunch box for Doondeswar and arranging his books in school bag every day. I am not objecting to it, as she derives some solace out of this,'' Mr. Dwarakanath said. Mr. Durga Malleswara Rao's house at Hanumanpet was packed with relatives, as he was making arrangements for the first anniversary of his son, slated for November 16 according to the Telugu almanac.

``My son wanted to become an IAS officer. Besides academics, he excelled in music, dance, sports and cultural activities. I am proud that he brought us laurels even after his death. But, I wish to see the school correspondent punished,'' he said.

Teja Sai's mother Padma Santhi is convalescing after undergoing treatment at Rajahmundry for the `shock of her life.'

``Though the Government failed to take action against the school correspondent, it did justice to my son by announcing this award," Mr. Malleswara Rao said.

Parents of Doondeswar and Teja Sai will receive the award in New Delhi on January 26.

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