Bengaluru: 114 boxes of thread, multiple cuts including a 7m-long one, and hours of pain are what a 14-year-old girl went through after her cousin attacked her with a chainsaw in her classroom at the zilla parishad high school in Raptadu village in Andhra Pradesh.She has now been shifted to Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru, where doctors have taken her for surgery. Addressing the media after his visit, minister for Education and IT, Nara Lokesh, said she is stable as of Sunday evening but the next 48 hours are critical.Through it all, what has struck those around her is her will to hold on. Lokesh said when she was being moved out of the school after the attack, a staff member asked her to be strong, and she responded with a thumbs-up. “She is very strong and her will power to recover is very courageous.” In all, she has been through almost 20 hours of surgery: eight hours at Anantapur, where she received six units of blood and four units of plasma, and 12 hours in Bengaluru.Lokesh said the doctors were unable to count the cuts as many are so close that they touch each other in a few places, while others lie on top of one another. “Doctors told me that they have never seen such a case before. In all, 114 boxes of surgical thread were used.”The move to Bengaluru was made possible by quick action from Karnataka govt. Lokesh said Andhra Pradesh govt reached out to Karnataka, asking for a green corridor. “I especially thank the Karnataka govt. They supported us in taking her to Manipal Hospital,” he said.Another girl, who bravely tried to stop the attacker, was also injured in the process. She has suffered a hairline fracture and will undergo surgery Sunday in Anantapur. Lokesh said she is out of danger.“This is a long road to recovery. It is important to proactively engage with the students and ensure they do not have any stress. There is always trauma that kids carry. We want to ensure it does not affect them in the short or long term,” he said.Lokesh termed the incident very untoward. He said the accused had entered the school under the guise of a construction worker, adding that govt would take strict legal action against everyone responsible.
