A class VIII boy was electrocuted in his school near Tirutani on Friday when he was trying to switch on a motor pump on his school premises on instructions of the headmistress.
Following the incident, the residents in Velachery, a village near Tirutani, staged a protest demanding action against the principal for asking students to do menial jobs.
N Dhanasekaran (13) was studying in class VIII of Velachery Panchayat Middle School. “On Friday, the teachers and students were involved in tree planting in the campus. For this, the headmistress had asked Dhanasekaran to switch on the motor for supply of water. But due to rains, there seems to be electric leakage which resulted in the accident,” police said.
The villagers alleged that the teachers delayed informing the parents about the death. They said only after the boy was taken to a government hospital and the doctors declared the boy dead, the parents were informed.
On Saturday morning, demanding action against the school headmistress S M Selvi for negligence, the villagers blocked the Tirutani-Nagalapuram Road for an hour. They also demanded appointment of a watchman in the school to avoid teachers engaging students in menial jobs.
Police officers and revenue officials pacified the villagers and assured financial compensation for the family.
The police also booked the principal on charges of negligence. She was released by the police on station bail.