The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has directed the State government to pay compensation of ₹15 lakh each to the family members of four girl students who drowned in Cauvery river in Karur district in 2023.

The court was hearing the petitions filed by the family members of Tamilarasi, 13, Lavanya, 11, Iniya, 11, and Sophiya, 12. The children were students of the Government Middle School at Pillipatti in Viralimalai, Pudukkottai district. The parents were daily wagers.

The students were part of the school football team that participated in the State-level football tournament held in Tiruchi district. The students were accompanied by three teachers. While returning to Pudukkottai, the students went to take a dip in Cauvery river at Mayanur in Karur district.

Sophiya saved 11 students from drowning. Unfortunately, she and the three other students drowned. The Fire and Rescue Services personnel retrieved the bodies of the four students. The State government handed over an ex-gratia amount of ₹2 lakh each to the family members of the deceased students. The petitioners sought adequate compensation.

Justice V. Lakshminarayanan observed that the teachers owed a duty towards the students and their parents. The duty had been breached by permitting the students to enter Cauvery river without taking adequate safety precautions.

The court observed that had the teachers shown supervision and surveillance as required of them, the incident might not have happened at all. As the school is a government school, the government has to be held vicariously liable. School authorities and the government are subject to vicarious liability because they stand, to a certain extent, in relation to their pupils or students in loco parentis.

The court observed that ₹15 lakh each to the family members of the deceased students would be just and reasonable. Taking into account that ₹2 lakh each had already been paid by the State government, the court directed the State to pay ₹13 lakh each to the family members of the students. The court observed that the petitioners were also entitled to a cost of ₹10,000 each and the amount shall be paid equally by the three teachers.