No toilet, TN woman goes to field in ‘model’ Swachh Bharat village, killed by boar

MADURAI: A 56-year-old woman died after reportedly being attacked by a boar while she was relieving herself in scrubland in Ramanathapuram district.The death has raised questions over sanitation claims in Ariyanendal, which govt showcased as a ‘model village’ under Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen).Since her home had no toilet and community facilities were unusable, M Kaali Muthu, an anganwadi worker from Ariyanendal, went outside around 9pm on Tuesday.When she did not return home for more than an hour, her husband, Murali, and other relatives began searching the fields behind their house. Around 10.45pm, they found her lying dead in a pool of blood among the scrub.An investigating officer said the woman’s right thigh had injuries that appeared to have been inflicted by a wild boar. “However, we can confirm the cause of death only after a postmortem report is received,” the officer added.Police registered a case and sent her body to Paramakudi government hospital for postmortem.Police and forest officials are investigating the circumstances of the death.Boars regularly stray through the thickets behind the woman’s home, where invasive prosopis juliflora trees grow amid dense scrub, residents said. It may be recalled that the rural sanitation programme’s 2022 ‘success story’ was presented as an example for other villages to follow.Govt acknowledged toilet coverage was just 10% before 2012, when residents defecated near prosopis thickets amid outbreaks of waterborne diseases.The District Rural Development Agency said it cleared 23 acres of scrubland and launched extensive tree planting to create a ‘beautiful forest’.“This initiative took away the open defecation areas traditionally used by villagers in their vicinity. People began to use the toilets that were constructed,” the mission’s blog said. Govt records list nearly Rs 63 lakh in estimated drainage and soak-pit works under multiple schemes.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Madurai | Silver Rate in Madurai | Bank Holidays in Madurai | Public Holidays in Madurai | Madurai AQI | Weather in Madurai | Petrol Price in Madurai | Diesel Price in Madurai | CNG Price in Madurai | LPG Price in MaduraiStay updated with the latest Madurai news. Download the TOI App.