An NCC cadet died after he sustained a bullet injury in a training camp in Kozhikode on Tuesday. The victim was identified as Danesh Krishna, 19, a higher secondary student hailing from Pathanapuram in Kollam district. He was among 300-odd cadets from across the state, attending a 10-day camp at NCC campus in Kozhikode. The Kozhikode city police commissioner P A Valsan said the incident occurred when the cadets went for lunch break. A case of accidental death was registered and an assistant commissioner would probe into the incident. "There was training in fire arms on Tuesday. Cadets were given training in batches. The victim belonged to the last batch, which went for lunch after the training session. However, Krishna came back from the group to the firing butt, where a Havildar was taking stock of the arms, which were returned to there after the firing. After the cadet entered into the firing butt, the Havildar heard a gunshot behind him. Looking back, he saw the cadet falling," said the commissioner. [related-post] He said there is no eye witness for the incident to ascertain how the fire arm, a.22 rifle, went off. The cadet has sustained a bullet injury just above his right nipple. "We would take the statements of other participants as part of the investigation." The police said the fire arm might have gone off when the cadet tried to examine it. During the firing, all cadets got five rounds of firing from their rifle, but Krishna got only four rounds of firing from the weapon he used. He could not recover the spent case also. Krishna is survived by mother Ramadevi, who is a panchayat member in Kollam district, and an elder sister. Last year, another NCC cadet had died after he sustained bullet injury in a firing range. M Anas, 18, was a first-year degree student in a college in Kannur. He had sustained bullet injury during a firing practice held in a private college campus in Kannur in the second week of September. The bullet fired by another cadet had accidentaly hit his right chest. The NCC did not take the injury seriously and termed it as a minor case. However, the youth’s limbs were paralysed. Later, he was shifted to Bangalore for expert treatment after the state government borne all expenses. He died on November 6. The NCC had ordered for a probe, but found the fatal firing as an accidental one. Anas was clearing the remains of the previous day’s practice when an officer gave firing orders for another cadet. The officer failed to notice the cadet repairing the target.
