A shocking incident has come to light in Tamil Nadu's Thiruvarur district, where a government school was allegedly targeted by miscreants. According to reports, three men, purportedly inebriated, trespassed onto the school premises and deliberately contaminated the drinking water supply with human feces. The contaminated water was then allegedly used to prepare food that was served to the students.

The incident occurred in Kariyakudi village, near Thiruvarur, approximately 320 kilometers from Chennai. The school, a government primary school, has an enrollment of over 30 students. The perpetrators reportedly entered the premises late at night and vandalized the school kitchen in addition to polluting the water supply. School staff discovered the contamination while preparing food. They found that a plastic plate covering the drinking water tank had been forcibly broken, and human feces were found inside the tank. Some items in the kitchen were damaged and missing.

Local police have registered a case and initiated an investigation to identify and apprehend those responsible. A senior police official stated that they have been investigating the matter since morning. As of now, authorities have not confirmed any arrests. The Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) is supervising the investigation.

The incident has sparked outrage and concern among parents and the local community, who fear for the health and safety of their children. Authorities are taking the matter seriously, with the Thiruvarur collector stating that officials are taking all necessary steps to fully investigate the case. However, the collector has refrained from confirming the presence of human feces in the water tank until a thorough investigation is completed. Water samples have been sent for testing.

This incident has drawn comparisons to a similar case from December 2022 in Vengaivayal village, Pudukottai district, where human feces were discovered in an overhead tank supplying drinking water to Scheduled Caste residents. That contamination came to light after several children fell ill from consuming the water. Despite widespread outrage and a CB-CID probe ordered by the High Court, no arrests have been made in the Vengaivayal case.

In a separate incident in Kancheepuram district in November 2023, reports of fecal matter in a school water tank were clarified by the district collector, who stated that the foul smell was due to a broken egg inside the tank. In another instance, in Dharmapuri, revenue officials dismissed allegations of fecal matter in a school water tank as rumors, attributing the foul smell to bird droppings and algae growth in a tank used only for lavatory purposes.

This latest incident in Thiruvarur adds to the growing concerns about the safety and security of drinking water sources in Tamil Nadu, particularly for vulnerable communities and school children. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities are under pressure to bring the perpetrators to justice and ensure that such incidents do not recur.