‘No faecal matter in school’s water tank’: Kancheepuram collector clarifies after row over foul smell from water

The school has 96 enrolled students.

As per the officials, on Tuesday, a mid-day meal staff had used water from an abandoned tank to cook food for the students. After she finished cooking, she experienced a foul smell emanating from it and alerted the staff.

The teachers and students checked the tank and thought faecal matter was mixed in the water and alerted the local police.

The matter was escalated to Mohan, who inspected the tank along with other officials.

Speaking to indianexpress.com, the collector said, “The school has a separate newly-built tank which had been providing water supply directly through pipelines. However, due to the construction of a new building, there was disruption in the water supply from that tank and hence, the students and the staff had to use the abandoned tank to clean utensils, wash raw materials like rice and for hand washing purposes.”

It was learnt that the school has a separate water connection coming from an overhead water tank to provide drinking water supply to the students as a part of the Chief Minister’s morning meal scheme.

“When we inspected, we found that inside the tank there was a half-broken egg shell along with the yolk. Any bird could have dropped it into the tank since it was open. After experiencing a foul smell, the school authority discharged the water from the tank and also disposed of the food prepared using the water from the abandoned tank. Today (Wednesday) we demolished that tank and the water supply from the new tank was restored,” Mohan told indianexpress.com.

Further, she noted that they have informed the officials to take data of all such abandoned tanks in all the schools of the district and take measures to demolish them immediately as well as chlorinate tanks and check the quality of drinking water at regular intervals to ensure no lapses occur.

During a press briefing Tuesday, the collector had said that they had conducted a full inquiry and there was no faecal matter as reported. Mohan also requested people not to spread false news.

On Tuesday, Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) leader Dr Ramadoos took to X to strongly condemn the Kancheepuram incident. He urged the police to identify those behind the incident and initiate stringent action against them.

He added that the government’s delay in action against “criminals involved in the inhumane act” at Vengavayal has caused such crimes to continue and increase and hence without further delay, the government should identify the criminals and bring them to justice.

It is to be noted that last December, at Vengavayal village in Tamil Nadu’s Pudukkotai district, faecal matter was found dumped inside an overhead water tank that was supplying drinking water to the residents of a Dalit colony.

The incident led to widespread outrage in the state. Despite several protests by the residents and condemnation by the Opposition parties, the state police are yet to identify and arrest the people who were responsible for the incident.