An Assistant Engineer of the Rural Development Department, Thanjavur district, has been placed under suspension after ceiling plaster fell down at the Sooriyanarkovil Village Panchayat office in Thiruvidaimaruthur Panchayat Union, Thanjavur district.
Collector B. Priyanka Pankajam said the building constructed at a cost of ₹30 lakh was declared open by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on June 16.
Subsequently, reports appeared in a section of the media that the ceiling plaster had peeled off and fallen, creating a sense of fear among the panchayat office staff.
Senior officials had inspected the building and issued instructions to rectify the defect as per the technical instructions given by the department in 2024 that cement plastering of ceiling should be carried out by adopting “two coats of ceiling patty plastering” method.
The Assistant Engineer, who supervised the construction work, had been placed under suspension and clarifications sought from two other AEs and senior officials involved in the project.
The ceiling has since been replastered, she added.
Published – June 21, 2025 07:32 pm IST