11 students ill after drinking tank water

Eleven students of a government high school took ill after drinking water from a tank that was allegedly laced with pesticide at A Hullukere village in the taluk on Monday.

The students, as usual, drank milk distributed in the school after prayers on Monday morning. Later, they went out to wash the tumblers and a few students drank water from the tank. There was a strong smell in the water and some students spit out the water. Students who swallowed the water started vomiting and took ill. The teachers immediately shifted the students to the hospital and informed the police.

The students were first provided first aid at the Kothathi government hospital and later shifted to the Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences. The students are responding to the treatment and are out of danger, doctors said.

It is alleged that pesticide granules were been mixed in the tank water by miscreants. The worms in the tank too were found dead, it is said.

A probe is on to find who had mixed poison in the drinking water tank, police said. The rural police have registered a case.