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About 600 students leave Melghat tribal hostel
NDTV··17 Aug
Nearly 600 tribal students left a government residential school at Doma in Chikhaldara, Amravati, after rumours that some girls were possessed. The school houses 810 children. The episode began on 22 July when four girls cried and laughed without control. Some said they heard anklets at night. Headmaster Sanjay Chaudhari said a few students had returned.
Prism
What It Means For You
- If your child boards at Doma ashram school, about 600 of 810 students left after rumours of possession spread from late July.
- Parents can note doctors described the laughing and crying fits as mass psychogenic illness tied to stress, not spirits.
- Families waiting for a return-to-class plan can see the headmaster said counselling is on and that a few students have come back.
What's Happening
- Students began leaving the Tribal Development Department hostel at Doma, Melghat, after unusual behaviour among girls from 22 July 2026.
- Health teams and the state tribal commissioner visited; officials rejected a supernatural explanation.
- Amravati MP Balwant Wankhade asked students to resume classes; a rationalist group also held counselling sessions.
What Officials Said About Hostel Conditions
- Times of India put the number who left at 608; NDTV used nearly 600.
- Officials said some rooms held about 50 students and that the first distress was not met with prompt counselling.
- Village women later reported similar symptoms, according to the psychological report prepared for the administration.
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