Though courage knows no gender, our society still believes that women are weak and vulnerable. While our society keeps its eyes shut to the power of women, we believe in celebrating their stories of courage.
We hope one-day society will accept that women are not the weaker sex.
Today, we are celebrating one such story of immense courage: The story of 14-year-old Amandeep Kaur.
According to NDTV, on February 15 a school van carrying 12 students in Punjab’s Sangrur district caught fire on the Longowal-Sidsamachar road. While 8 children were rescued, 4 kids lost their lives in the tragedy.
Deeply grieved to learn about the tragic deaths of four children as their school van catches fire near Longowal in Punjab.
My thoughts are with the bereaved families & prayers with the injured ones to recover soon. I urge Punjab govt to extend all possible help to them. pic.twitter.com/RuvMcBzHa1— Harsimrat Kaur Badal (@HarsimratBadal_) February 15, 2020
As per the India Today, the 22-year-old van with an LPG cylinder was purchased from a junkyard dealer. While sharing the details, Deputy Commissioner Sangrur Ghanshyam Thori mentioned,
“Police have registered a criminal case against the van driver, school principal, and the management under section 304 of IPC.”
In the midst of this tragic incident, one person who stepped up and turned into a real-life hero is 14-year-old Amandeep Kaur. As per Business Standard, Amandeep not only managed to escape but also saved 4 kids from dying in the burning van.
I salute the extraordinary bravery & valour of 14 year old Amandeep Kaur who risked her life to put out the fire in the school van yesterday and also rescued 4 children from the van. I am so proud of you and I am looking forward to meeting you. pic.twitter.com/tOuGgqyK3N
— Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) February 16, 2020
While sharing the details of the horrific incident, The Indian Express quoted the braveheart saying,
“As soon as the van started off, I told the sir (teacher-cum-driver Dalbir Singh) that some smell was coming from the van.. but sir started driving it. I repeated again that smell was increasing, but he started looking here and there, and then at minor kids sitting close to him. Later, the fire was visible and we were forced to come out by breaking the windows of the van.”
She further added,
“I broke one window and moved out. I then helped four children come out. There were others too who had come to help. I ran towards the school building with those four kids who were crying bitterly.”
The Transport Department has launched a state wide drive of inspecting the condition and road worthiness of all school vans and buses. DCs are closely monitoring this drive. The safety of our children is paramount and we will take all necessary steps in this regard. pic.twitter.com/LIYDHGESk8
— Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) February 17, 2020
For Amandeep’s brave attempt, Sangrur DC has recommended her name for a bravery award by CM Capt Amarinder Singh.
At IFORHER, while we celebrate this brave act by Amandeep, we couldn’t stop thinking about those kids who lost their lives in the incident. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims, their families and loved ones.
Hope authorities would take extreme steps to ensure such incidents don’t happen again.