Court’s Decision
The Division Bench of the Kerala High Court, led by Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Shoba Annamma Eapen, delivered a comprehensive judgment on September 26, 2025, in a suo motu public interest litigation concerning the tragic death of a young student due to a snakebite inside her classroom at Sulthan Bathery, Wayanad.
The Court held that the absence of a coordinated inter-departmental framework to prevent and respond to snakebite envenoming in schools constituted a grave administrative failure. It directed the Government of Kerala to issue and implement uniform, comprehensive guidelines integrating the roles of the Education, Health, Forest, Local Self-Government, and Police Departments to ensure safety of children in schools.
The Bench remarked:
“Snakebite envenoming is not merely a rural health issue but a public safety and child protection concern. The State must move from a reactionary to a preventive approach.” Accordingly, the Court approved the State’s final guidelines dated 1 September 2025, formulated after extensive inter-departmental consultation, and directed immediate implementation before the academic year 2025–26.
Facts
The litigation stemmed from two petitions — one filed by a citizen activist and another initiated suo motu by the Court after the death of a fifth-standard girl in Wayanad, bitten by a snake inside her classroom on 20 November 2019. The tragedy sparked widespread protests across Kerala, drawing attention to the dilapidated state of school infrastructure, lack of medical preparedness, and absence of clear rescue protocols for emergencies.
The petitions exposed systemic gaps:
- Non-availability of anti-snake venom (ASV) in rural hospitals.
- Absence of paediatric ventilators in several districts.
- No unified policy assigning responsibility across departments.
- Poor coordination between Education, Health, and Forest Departments.
The Court repeatedly summoned reports from the District Legal Services Authorities (DLSAs), which confirmed severe deficiencies — several hospitals lacked basic life-saving equipment, and school inspections revealed unsafe, overgrown, and unhygienic premises.
Issues
- Whether the State of Kerala failed in its constitutional duty to ensure the safety of children in schools from preventable hazards such as snakebites.
- Whether the absence of inter-departmental coordination violated the right to life under Article 21.
- Whether the State is obliged to declare snakebite envenoming a notifiable disease under the Public Health Act.
- What institutional mechanisms must be established to prevent recurrence of such tragedies.
Petitioner’s Arguments
The petitioner emphasized that despite the tragic precedent, the State’s response remained fragmented and perfunctory. The Education Department’s circulars of November 2019 and May 2025 merely placed responsibility on school managements without integrating the Health or Forest Departments.
It was contended that snakebite envenoming is a recognized neglected tropical disease under the WHO’s global framework and requires state-level data collection, anti-venom logistics, and public awareness. The petitioner urged that Kerala should follow other states that have declared snakebite a notifiable disease, thereby ensuring systematic surveillance, data collection, and prompt response.
He further argued that the State’s inaction violated Article 21, as children’s safety in schools forms part of the right to life and dignity.
Respondent’s Arguments
The Government Pleader submitted that steps were being taken to address the issue, including the formulation of a comprehensive set of Guidelines for School Safety and Snakebite Management, prepared after a meeting chaired by the Chief Secretary on 1 September 2025.
The State pointed out that inputs had been obtained from the Health, Education, Forest, and Local Self-Government Departments, along with the National Health Mission, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, and the National Institute of Virology. The Government asserted that anti-snake venom availability was being expanded to all taluk-level hospitals and a proposal to declare snakebite a notifiable disease was under active consideration.
The State maintained that it had initiated awareness campaigns such as ‘Sarpa Suraksha’ and ‘Sarpa Paadam’ in schools to promote snakebite prevention, with over 3,200 trained volunteers and 60,000 successful rescues recorded over five years.
Analysis of the Law
The Court placed heavy reliance on the National Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming (NAPSE), 2022, issued by the National Centre for Disease Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. It identified four core pillars:
- Universal access to effective antivenoms and trained healthcare personnel.
- Community empowerment and preventive awareness.
- Strengthening health systems and research infrastructure.
- Inter-agency coordination for data and emergency response.
- KULATHOOR
The Court reiterated that the right to education under Article 21A necessarily includes the right to safety in educational institutions. It cited the Supreme Court’s observation in Avinash Mehrotra v. Union of India (2009) 6 SCC 398 that “the State is duty-bound to ensure that children are not exposed to avoidable dangers while attending school.”
It held that snakebite prevention and school safety cannot be isolated departmental duties but must form part of an integrated child safety ecosystem, invoking the doctrine of cooperative federalism within the State’s administrative structure.
Precedent Analysis
- Avinash Mehrotra v. Union of India (2009) 6 SCC 398 — The Supreme Court directed that every school must comply with minimum safety norms to protect children’s lives, forming the constitutional foundation for the present directions.
- Vineet Narain v. Union of India (1998) 1 SCC 226 — Reaffirmed that when the executive fails in enforcing its duties, constitutional courts must intervene to ensure administrative accountability.
- Municipal Council, Ratlam v. Vardhichand (1980) 4 SCC 162 — Established that local authorities cannot evade statutory duties on public health grounds.
- L.K. Koolwal v. State of Rajasthan (AIR 1988 Raj 2) — Recognized citizens’ right to enforce the State’s obligation to maintain public sanitation and safety.
- National Action Plan (NAPSE, 2022) — Treated as a guiding document, instructing States to establish surveillance systems, regional anti-venom production, and community engagement to achieve zero snakebite deaths by 2030..
Court’s Reasoning
The Court observed that despite multiple opportunities, the State failed to produce a coherent policy until judicial intervention compelled inter-departmental coordination. It remarked that:
“Children continue to study in unsafe conditions because bureaucratic compartmentalization prevents a unified response. The safety of children cannot depend on departmental boundaries.”
KULATHOOR
The Bench meticulously reviewed the new “Guidelines on School Safety and Snakebite Management”, which prescribe:
- Safety audits and structural stability checks for all schools.
- Mandatory first-aid training, display of hospital contacts, and coordination with Primary Health Centres.
- Mock drills and awareness sessions for students and staff.
- Cooperation with SARPA (Snake Awareness, Rescue, and Protection App) and certified snake handlers.
- Declaration of snakebite as a notifiable disease under the Public Health Act.
- Formation of School Safety Monitoring Committees with local body and departmental representatives.
The Court emphasized that these directions were not mere administrative measures but constitutional mandates, ensuring that “no child’s death in a classroom is ever repeated.”
Conclusion
The Kerala High Court approved the comprehensive circular prepared by the State, integrating education, health, and environmental measures, and directed its immediate statewide implementation. The Court also required the Chief Secretary to monitor compliance and periodically update the Court through the Kerala State Legal Services Authority.
The Bench concluded:
“The safety of school children is a non-negotiable constitutional imperative. The State must ensure that every school, public or private, urban or rural, becomes a space of learning — not a site of tragedy.”
Implications
This judgment sets a pan-India benchmark for inter-departmental collaboration in preventing snakebite fatalities and ensuring school safety. It transforms a tragic local incident into a model framework for national policy.
The decision underscores:
- The State’s duty under Articles 21, 21A, and 47 to protect children’s health and safety.
- The necessity of scientific policy-making through cross-departmental accountability.
- The recognition of snakebite as a public health emergency, not a rural accident.
The SARPA initiative and the Snakebite Death-Free Kerala Mission are expected to serve as national templates, combining technological innovation, local participation, and preventive governance.
FAQs
1. Why did the Kerala High Court intervene in this case?
The Court took suo motu cognizance after a child died from a snakebite inside a classroom, recognizing it as a systemic failure requiring judicial oversight.
2. What key directions did the Court issue?
It ordered the State to issue and implement inter-departmental guidelines ensuring school safety audits, medical preparedness, awareness programmes, and coordination between Education, Health, and Forest Departments.
3. Will snakebite be declared a notifiable disease in Kerala?
Yes. The Court recorded the State’s commitment to notify snakebite envenoming under the Public Health Act, enabling real-time data collection and prevention.
