Kerala High Court Takes Suo Moto Cognizance Of Students' Letter About Flooding Of Village School, Asks Collector To Take Steps

The Kerala High Court today took suo moto cognizance of a letter addressed to the Chief Justice by around 200 students of SNDP Higher Secondary School, stating that their campus located below sea-level in Kainakary Grama Panchayat in Kuttanad district of Alappuzha has been submerged in water since over a month.

According to the letter, on 29th May 2025, the embankment collapsed due to heavy rains and for the past one and half months, 20 classrooms have been submerged up to windowsill. Classes are being conducted in 4 rooms that are not submerged, including library and computer lab.

The students and teachers have written that despite various applications to the authorities, position has not improved.

The bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji took up the matter on Wednesday (July 23) and passed an interim order directing the District Collector of the area to call for a joint meeting of the officers concerned. It ordered,

"The District Collector will call for a joint meeting of the concerned officers from the Education department, agriculture department, representative of the school, to ascertain the factual position and issue necessary directions as the District Collector deems fit and warranted to remedy the situation pointed out by the students." 

The Court stated that matter would be posted on next Thursday (July 31) for submitting an action taken report.

"Ask the Collector to look into and find out if there are other schools also in the area having similar problem," the Court orally observed.

"Thereafter, the Court may consider taking up the larger issue regarding other schools in the area, if any and for long term solutions," it added.

The Court went on to appoint an amicus to assist it in the matter. It also directed that KeLSA (Kerala State Legal Services Authority) be joined as a party respondent and the District Legal Services Authority to carry out a factual enquiry and appraise the amicus and, then file the proper format petition with necessary prayers.

Case No: WP(PIL) 87/2025

Case Title: Suo Motu Proceedings Initiated by the High Court v. State of Kerala and Ors.