SC/ST hostel students go on an indefinite fast http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Hindu/400x60/0
Staff Reporter Demand better infrastructure and sanitation For a better deal: Students observing a fast at Adi Dravidar Boys Hostel in Tuticorin on Thursday. Tuticorin: Inmates at the student's hostel established by the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department near New Bus Stand on Tuticorin-Ettayapuram highway for SC/STs started an indefinite fast here on Thursday. They were protesting the "infrastructural weaknesses" on the premises. The students said that despite repeated representations made to the officials concerned, hygiene and sanitation needs were not taken care of properly. No proper toilets According to them, only two toilets were available on the premises for a total of 69 inmates lodged at the hostel. "Both these lavatories were in bad shape for the past few months. All our pleas to repair the facilities had been cold shouldered," they said. They added that similarly, septic tank was in a bad shape and the sewage from nearby areas was found mixing with the water in the open well situated on the premises from where water was drawn for cooking. "Hence, we are in a danger of contracting dreaded diseases," the youth said. Besides, food was not cooked under "hygienic conditions" and drinking water was supplied to the hostel only once in a week. The agitators said that they would continue their struggle till the infrastructural gaps were filled. K. Prabhavati, District Adi Dravidar welfare officer, said that four more toilets and a borewell would be established soon, to address the grievances of the students.
