CHENNAI: Since the crude oil spillage was reported in areas like Ennore, Ernavoor, Tiruvottiyur, and other regions, the State government, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL), and residents of north Chennai have begun cleaning the sediments from the lake bed and coast.
In schools, the staff there have been manually cleaning the walls and floors, with little to no help from CPCL or the Corporation.
Though the schools in the area had to be closed for 2 more days for clean-up works, a corporation school in Sathya Moorthy Nagar in Tiruvottiyur is one of the worst affected. Students complained of nausea and headache caused by the stench of the oil.
Speaking to DT Next, a class 4 student, said, “All the benches, notebooks, and materials inside the classroom is smeared with oil. I started feeling nauseous due to the smell inside the classroom, and generally in school.”
Her younger sister at the Anganwadi centre inside the school vomited. “In the beginning, my sister had complained of a headache and soon, she began vomiting in class. She was later asked to go home. Despite thorough cleaning, we still smell the oil from the walls,” she added.
The staff said that they had thoroughly cleaned the school with bare hands. And, 15 staff members were employed to clean the Anganwadi center alone, they said.
“We manually cleaned the school with the help of corporation staff employed at the school, watchman, and others. CPCL workers only clean the outside of the school,” a staff at the corporation school said.
Subsequently, another class 9 student in a government school in Ernavoor said that the stench is unbearable inside the class. “Breathing the smell for a long-time causes nausea and headache. But, we’re asked to adjust,” the student said.
Additionally, residents of the village and parents have strongly suggested painting all the schools as mere cleaning will not suffice. Meanwhile, the education department officials clarified that they have no intention of painting schools as of yet.