Carmel school tree accident: City residents in Odisha and Delhi come together to help female conductor
People not only from Chandigarh but also from Delhi and Odisha have come together to help single mother Sheela, the female conductor who is fighting for life in ICU at PGI after a 250-year-old tree ran into her while trying to rescue students at Carmel Convent School.
The Indian Express reported on June 10 how Sheela, who was otherwise struggling for her life as a single mother, had in fact rushed to save the children sitting under the heritage tree when she was also seriously injured.
Her two children – an 18-year-old daughter and a 15-year-old son – who had Sheela as their sole support prayed for her recovery as she is in a coma.
The rent for his June and July house was on hold and was paid on Thursday by a forum, India Cares. India Cares (not an NGO) is an initiative to connect those who can help with those who need help. Odisha-based IPS officer Arun Bothra is the mentor who started this initiative in 2020.
Sabita Chanda, HR professional and volunteer at India Cares, confirmed the same.
Sheela used to stay in Kishangarh in a rented house with her two children. She had separated from her husband about 15 years ago because he was unemployed and beat her frequently, her colleague said. Not only that, the donors from Odisha, Delhi and Chandigarh who are Promise Bank’s depositors in the forum also paid the rent for Sheela’s house for the rest of the year.
Prateek Rishi, founder of Raine Foundation, contacted Sheela’s daughter and helped her by providing all the necessary medicine.
“After reading the article in The Indian Express and getting details of Sheela’s children, we contacted her daughter and provided her with the necessary medication. We are also committed to taking care of the rental and rationing needs of children. This was done under the auspices of the Raine Foundation and the JC Rishi Fellowship,” Prateek said.
Not only that, CESA, the Carmel Alumni Association, also tries to help the family by collecting contributions from all former students of the school. Many members have also made donations that will go directly to Sheela.
Sheela continues to be in a coma at PGI.
Sheela, 36, a female conductor at Carmel Convent, was arranging chairs when she saw the tree fall. Hearing the cries of the children, she ran to their aid. She was helping the trapped girls when a huge branch fell on her. Today, her two children are alone while she
fights for every breath in the ICU.
Sheela is a single mother of two teenagers, Tarandeep Singh, 15, and Jashanpreet Kaur, 18. The two were inconsolable when they learned of the accident.