A shocking incident has come to light at the Marathwada Mitra Mandal Institute of Technology (MMIT) hostel in Lohgaon, where 12 female students reportedly suffered poisoning from contaminated drinking water. All the affected students are currently receiving treatment at Saishraddha Hospital, Lohgaon. The students have expressed outrage, blaming the college administration’s negligence for the incident.
Worms found in the drinking water exposed the administration’s careless management. The students said, “Yellowish and dirty water was coming through the filters we were using. On February 10, we saw black worms in the water tanks and buckets. We showed photos and videos to the college administration and filed complaints, but no action was taken.”
“We had already complained about the contaminated water in January, but they only cleaned the tank; the filters were never replaced. After the poisoning, they hurriedly changed the filters. When we tried to open the filters to inspect them, we were told, ‘Who asked you? You have no right,’ and were silenced.”
The severity of the poisoning was such that students began to feel dizzy and collapse within the hostel. As girls were fainting while walking and talking, panic spread. A few days earlier, the students had visited the hospital themselves for checkups and received IV fluids, but the discomfort returned once they went back to the hostel.
The college campus is isolated, with minimal traffic, and the administration failed to provide an ambulance or their own vehicle on time. The students had to rely on private vehicles or help from each other to reach the hospital.
The affected engineering students hospitalized at MMIT include Shreya Mahadik (First Year) from Chiplun, Runali Mahajan (First Year) from Jalgaon, Shreenidhi Gupta (Second Year) from Nagpur, Sakshi Swami (Second Year) from Ahilyanagar, Siddhi Umate (First Year) from Latur, Shreyash Irkar (First Year) from Dharashiv, Mansi Deshmukh (First Year) from Parbhani, Kunika Devalkar (First Year) from Chandrapur, and Kamlesh Nikam (First Year) from Chalisgaon.
Students in critical condition include Tripti Gavande (First Year) from Sambhajinagar, Pranaya Chavan (First Year) from Karanja, and Samruddhi Hande (First Year) from Junnar.