Odisha teacher collapses, dies during Ganesh Puja celebrations

A solemn religious ceremony turned tragic at Saleikena Government Upper Primary School under Telkoi block in Keonjhar district on Wednesday when a schoolteacher collapsed and died while participating in Ganesh Puja rituals.

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The deceased, identified as Chandan Kumar Jena, hailed from Antaroi village in Kamarasalia locality of Balasore district. He had been serving as an assistant teacher at the Saleikena school for nearly the past seven years.

The incident occurred around 10.00 AM, when Ganesh Puja was underway at the school. During the Pushpanjali (flower offering) ritual, a priest was chanting mantras. As Chandan approached to offer flowers, he suddenly collapsed.

Fellow teachers present at the scene rushed him to Telkoi Community Health Centre, but doctors declared him brought ‘dead’. Preliminary information suggests he suffered a heart attack and succumbed to a stroke.

The unexpected death has left the school community and local residents in deep shock and mourning. School authorities have informed the family, and further formalities are being completed.

“We were standing to offer Pushpanjali. The priest had just started chanting a mantra when Sir (the teacher) collapsed on the ground. We rushed him to hospital. But, he was declared dead by doctors of the health facility,” the UP school headmaster, Udaya Pradhan, said.

“When the Pushpanjali ritual was about to be performed, Sir distributed flowers among others and stood to offer Pushpanjali. All of a sudden, he fell on the ground. We took him to the teachers’ common room and performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), but to no avail,” another teacher of the school, Dharanidhar Mahalik, stated.