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Thiruvananthapuram: Days after a schoolgirl subjected to a physical search for a cell phone attempted suicide, the Kerala government has proposed to ban school children from carrying cell phones.
State Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan informed the assembly on Tuesday that the government had been receiving complaints about the misuse of mobile phones in schools and proposed a ban on the device, possibly up to the secondary school level.
The rampant use of mobile phones in schools in Kerala came under the spotlight after controversy erupted over an alleged body search of a female student by teachers of the St Mary's School at Vettukadu on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram.
The teachers apparently resorted to the search over suspicion that she had concealed a mobile phone in her dress, but the incident took a different turn after the girl tried to end her life.
She was admitted to the Medical College hospital and later shifted to the intensive care unit.
Women's panel probe
The state women's commission sought to launch an inquiry into the matter, and the local police charged two teachers of the school for violation of the Juvenile Justice Act. The girl at the centre of the controversy faces charges for attempting suicide.
There had been reports that the girl had been stripped to conduct the search and that it was the manner of the search that prompted her to attempt suicide. The school authorities have, however, denied that the teachers had asked the student to strip.
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