Most victims aspiring students

Dilsukhnagar,the blast site,is biggest educational hub of Andhra Pradesh

Terror-hit Dilsukhnagar in Hyderabad is one of the biggest educational hubs in the state. Colleges,civil service coaching centres,computer institutes,software development training centres,the area is often teeming with students. It is one reason why more than 60 victims of the blasts are youths in age-group of 18 to 22. The explosions on Thursday night has irredeemably affected the lives of many among them.

Patti Manasa,21

A friends call just in the nick of time wishing her happy birthday saved her life. Manasa was taking her friends for a birthday treat to Anand Tiffin Centre in Dilsukhnagar after attending a coaching class. When the phone rang,she stopped on road to answer the call. And the blast took place. It almost blinded her. Flying debris from the explosion hit her eyes. She was also injured on her right arm and left leg.

Doctors at L V Prasad Eye Hospital have cleaned her eyes but her vision continues to be foggy,said her father Patti Mallaiah. A second-year engineering student at Mathrushri Engineering College in Hyderabad,she will remain under medication till March 7. If she does not regain full vision,doctors will then decide if a surgery can be performed. Manasa is from Odela in Karimnagar district.

R Harish Reddy,20

A first-year student from RVR Engineering College,Ibrahimpatnam,he was injured on his right leg. Son of a farmer in Wanaparthi,Mahbubnagar,Harish has been the only hope of his family. He lived in a room with four other students in B N Reddy Nagar. On Thursday,he first visited the Sai Baba Temple in Dilsukhnagar and went to buy study material from near Venkatadri Theatre. Surgeries have been performed on his right leg. We dont know if he will be able to walk properly, said Dharma Reddy,his cousin brother.

Panduranga Reddy,21

He does not know that he has scored a first class in his penultimate semester of engineering course. The results were declared by the Bharat Engineering College in Ibrahimpatnam on Saturday. Since Thursday,he has been on ventilator in the ICU of Yashoda Hospital. On Thursday,he had gone to Dilsukhnagar to purchase stationery. His left eye has been removed and he remains critically injured on his left arm and shin. Reddy belongs to a lower middle-class family from Munugodu in Nalgonda and used to live in a hostel in Chaitanyapuri.

N Parameshwar Yadav,19

A second-year student of Sri Sai Degree College in Dilsukhnagar,he was getting ready for his engineering and medical entrance tests. On the fateful day,he was returning to his hostel. The blast ripped open the left side of his abdomen. A four-hour-long surgery by doctors at Omni Hospital saved his life. They had to remove parts of his stomach. He is under observation and more surgeries may be needed. We dont know if he will able to lead a normal life, said his brother Rajasekhar.

Sudha Rani,19

A second-year degree student of BVM Degree College,the blasts have severely damaged her right leg. She has already undergone two surgeries to remove pieces of shrapnel and continues to be in the ICU of Kamala Hospital. On Thursday,she had gone to buy a few books as she was preparing for engineering and medical entrance tests. Metal pieces are lodged in some parts of her body. Doctors say further surgeries now will be risky, said Vijay Kumar,her brother.