Published Oct 15, 2026 | 8:23 AM ⚊ Updated Oct 15, 2026 | 8:23 AM
Kesavan, 29, of Nelli village in Chengalpattu district, died after being exposed to toxic gas while cleaning a sewage tank.
Synopsis: Six workers have died after inhaling toxic fumes during septic tank construction, sewage tank cleaning and repair work in Tamil Nadu over 10 days. The Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front called for safer sanitation practices, modern cleaning technology, protective equipment and urgent government action to prevent further deaths. It also demanded ₹30 lakh in compensation for each of the four workers who died in the Pallikaranai and Sendurai incidents, along with a government job for one member of each affected family.
Six workers have died after inhaling toxic fumes while constructing septic tanks, repairing a rainwater drainage pump and cleaning a sewage tank in Tamil Nadu over the past 10 days. The Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front (TNUEF) has demanded urgent government intervention, safer working conditions and compensation for the families of the deceased.
On 12 October, two workers, Asmath Basha, 38, of Periya Hasthinapuram in Arcot, Ranipet district, and Naveen Kumar, 34, of West Tambaram, died after inhaling toxic gas while repairing a faulty electric motor inside a 20-foot-deep well built for a rainwater drainage pump in Kodungaiyur, under the Perambur Assembly constituency in Chennai.
According to the TNUEF, sewage from surrounding drains had accumulated in the rainwater storage structure, leading to the formation of toxic gas.
29-year-old Kesavan.
On the same day, Kesavan, 29, of Nelli village in Chengalpattu district, died after being exposed to toxic gas while cleaning a sewage tank at a house on Veerasamy Street in Pallikaranai, Chennai. Rajesh, 49, a resident of Pallikaranai who was engaged in the same work, was admitted to a private hospital for treatment.
Manual scavenging is illegal under the the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.
Earlier, on 2 October, three workers, Ramachandran, a resident of Sendurai in Ariyalur district, and Bhaskar and Dinakaran, both from Tiruvarur district, died after inhaling toxic gas while constructing a septic tank in Gandhi Nagar, Sendurai.
TNUEF State president T Chellakannu and general secretary P Sugandhi called for urgent government intervention to prevent further deaths and ensure the safety and dignity of sanitation workers.
The organisation said it had been organising sustained protests to demand safer working conditions and an end to such preventable deaths.
An FIR was registered following the Sendurai incident, but only after TNUEF and Communist Party of India (Marxist) leaders staged a two-day protest, the organisation said.
The TNUEF has demanded compensation of ₹30 lakh each for the families of the four workers who died in the Pallikaranai and Sendurai incidents. It has also sought immediate government employment for one member of each affected family, citing a Supreme Court ruling.
The organisation called for effective sewage management, safe sanitation practices, modern cleaning technologies and adequate protective equipment for workers.
It also urged the Tamil Nadu government to establish sanitation engineering departments in higher education institutions to promote scientific and safer approaches to sanitation work.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
