Patna, Nov 4 (IANS): More than 100 school children and teachers had a narrow escape after miscreants mixed poisonous substance in the water tank of a government school near Patna on Saturday.

The incident took place at Taret Pali village under Naubatpur police station. When some students went to the tap to drink water, they smelled something foul and immediately informed the teachers and principal of the school.

“I had just reached the school when some students complained about a foul smell in the water. We immediately went to the tap and found that the water was smelling foul and had also turned sky blue in colour. We then went to the roof and found that the water inside the tank was blue with a foul smell coming from it,” said Kumari Khusboo, the principal of the Taret Pali government school.

“Initially, our teachers suggested emptying the tank and filling it with fresh water. However, I suspected it might a criminal act and hence informed the block education officer and SHO of the Naubatpur police station.

"Forensic officials came to the school and collected water sample from the tank. Luckily, not a single student had consumed the water. We also suspended preparation of midday meal for the day,” Khusboo said.

“We have received a written complaint from the principal of the school and have registered an FIR against unknown persons. We called the forensic team to collect water sample from the tank. The police are also scanning the CCTV footage of the area to find out those involved in the act,” said Prashant Bhardwaj, SHO of Naubatpur police station.