A 12-year-old girl exhibited exemplary presence of mind and courage to save her grandmother from getting drowned in a swollen stream at Kavalam, near here, the other day.

Devapriya, a Class VII student of Government UP School, Kavalam, did not think about her safety when she plunged into the water to rescue her grandmother Kamalamma, 78, of Nenmalaraykkal House. The incident took place around 4 pm on Friday.

When Devapriya returned home from school in the afternoon, she found that Kamalamma was not around. She asked her sister about their grandmother and searched for her in and around the house. It was then she heard the screams of the elderly woman, who was drowning in the stream.

Acting swiftly, the girl jumped into the overflowing stream and pulled Kamalamma out of the water with all her might. A group of women who were passing by a road adjacent to the stream helped her revive the victim.

Apart from experiencing breathing difficulty for some time, Kamalamma did not sustain any serious injuries. Later, she told that she slipped and fell into the water while washing clothes by the side of the stream.

Devapriya is the daughter of Kamalamma’s son Devarajan.

The incident came to light when the girl revealed it to her headmistress T K Indira on Monday. The school authorities and the PTA have decided to organise a function on the school premises on July 13 to felicitate Devapriya for her brave act.