The families of three laborers who died while cleaning a septic tank in Ariyalur are refusing to accept the bodies

The families of three laborers who suffocated to death on October 2 after stepping into a septic tank in an under-construction house at Sendurai in Ariyalur district have refused to accept the bodies after post-mortem and have demanded ₹30 crore as compensation for each victim from the state government.

The CPI(M), Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front (TNUEF) and Annihilation of Hazardous Sewerage Killings, a people’s science movement, extended their support to the families. The deceased was identified as K. Bhaskar, 42, of Srinivasapuram in Tiruvarur district; K. Dhinakaran, 60, of Alivalam village in Tiruvarur district, and K. Ramachandran, 45, of Nakkambadi village in Ariyalur district.

Dhinakaran, who entered the septic tank first to remove the wooden planks/support structure fixed inside, fell unconscious and died. Bhaskar and Ramachandran, who went to his rescue, one by one, also died.

The Sendurai police arrested the owner of the building, M. Subramanian of Sendurai. He was taken into judicial custody. A post-mortem was conducted at the government hospital in Ariyal, but the families of the victims refused to accept the bodies, police and CPI(M) sources said. The party, along with TNUEF, is in talks with officials who are demanding ₹30 crore as compensation for the families. However, no progress was made.

“The three laborers are from poor backgrounds and therefore the state government should provide an amount of Rs 30 lakh to each family as compensation,” said Udhayan, state organizer of Destruction of Dangerous Sewer Murders-Sarinigar.

Mr. Udhayan said he visited Ariyalur on Saturday and Sunday and interacted with the family members of the victims. Citing the Supreme Court judgment of 2023, Mr. Udhayan said that the compensation for deaths due to sewage would be Rs. 30 lakhs and shall be paid by the Union, Union Territory or State Government, as the case may be.

Their other demands include government contracts for one of the workers’ family members, for the government to bear the cost of education for the workers’ children, and to give the three families either a free house or a house instead. Mr. Udhayan said that a fact-finding team would soon be sent to Ariyal and the report would be submitted to the state government.

A group of CPI(M) and TNUEF members who allegedly tried to stage a protest in Ariyalur Collectorate were detained on Monday, police said.

Published – 5 Oct 2026 11:30 PM IST