Adilabad School Teacher Saves Students from Pesticide-Laced Water
Staff asked students not to drink tap water and declared it as restricted area
Hyderabad: The timely action taken by a teacher of the government primary school at Dharampuri village in Ichchoda mandal in Adilabad district prevented students from drinking water laced with pesticide bringing much needed relief to the administration and parents of over 30 students.
The teacher along with the staff first opened the drinking water taps when they found a smell emanating from it. They checked the tank and found a smell in the water. They immediately asked students not to drink water and declared the area as a restricted zone.
The staff then emptied the tank and washed it thrice properly before re-filling it with drinking water. After confirming that the water in the tank was safe, the staff allowed students to drink it. As the same water is used for cooking midday meals also, the staff prevented workers from using it to cook food.
The pesticide was also sprinkled on the midday meal material and utensils.
When contacted, Deputy Director, Adult Education, A Srinivas Reddy told Deccan Chronicle on Wednesday that all precautionary measures were taken to ensure safety of children.
“Our preliminary enquiry revealed that a person suffering from mental illness loiters around the village premises might have laced the water with pesticide and sprinkled the same on utensils. However, a detailed probe is on to find the persons behind it,” he said.
Based on a complaint, the police investigated and nabbed a person identified as Soyam Krishna, a resident of Gonduguda village. He admitted that he brought the pesticide from his brother’s house in Nirmal and entered the school door by breaking open the lock. Owing to family problems, Krishna was suffering from mental issues, the police said.