Parents refuse to send children to school for third consecutive week
Parents in Erode, Tamil Nadu, have kept their children out of school for three weeks to protest environmental pollution caused by local industrial units. They are demanding the closure of a private ethanol plant and a cassava processing unit that they claim are contaminating local water sources.
Why it matters
This highlights the ongoing tension between industrial development and local environmental health, specifically impacting children's access to education.
Parents refuse to send children to school for third consecutive week left A policeman uses a public address system to urge parents to send their children to school at Nathamedu village in Ammapettai block of Erode district. https://th-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/9h7dfx/article71616881.ece/alternates/FREE_1200/9870_23_10_2026_12_0_50_1_IMG_20261023_WA0021.JPG HANDOUT_E_MAIL Erode, Tamil Nadu, 23/10/2026: A policeman uses a public address system to urge parents to send their children to school at Nathamedu village in Ammapettai block of Erode district, Tamil Nadu. Photo: Special arrangement / The Hindu ERODE Parents have refused to send their children to Government Middle School at Nathamedu in Poonachi panchayat in Ammapettai block for the third consecutive week, demanding the closure of a private ethanol plant and a cassava processing unit in their area over alleged environmental pollution.
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