Locals in Ponneri stage protest after man finds dead lizard in packaged water bottle

CHENNAI: Protests erupted in Ponneri on Sunday, after a lizard was found dead in a sealed water bottle supplied by a private water purification plant.

According to a Daily Thanthi report, the issue came to light when Babu, a resident of Puzhal, purchased multiple water bottles from a private purification plant in Ponneri. On Sunday, he along with his family members visited a temple in Ponneri after which they had lunch together. While having the meal, Babu opened one of the purchased water bottles to drink and was horrified to find a dead lizard inside.

Babu immediately approached the staff at the private water plant but they failed to provide any proper answers. Infuriated by this, Babu and his relatives staged a protest and demanded action against the plant for operating under unhygienic conditions. On information, police arrived at the scene and advised the protesters to lodge a formal complaint with the Food Safety Department.

Meanwhile, others who had consumed water from the same batch of bottles went into a state of panic and became anxious about falling ill.

Following this, locals raised concerns over the plant's poor maintenance and urged the Food Safety Department to conduct regular inspections in such private institutions.

It may be noted that Babu's wife Sangeetha is a ward councillor of Chennai Corporation.