24 children fall ill after mid-day meal at Deoghar school in Jharkhand

Deoghar (Jharkhand), May 15 (IANS) At least 24 students fell ill on Thursday after consuming a mid-day meal at a government school in Mohanpur block of Jharkhand's Deoghar district.

The incident occurred at the Government Upgraded Middle School in Jamunia village shortly after lunch was served.

According to local sources, the school was closed for the day after the meal was served. As the children began returning home, many started experiencing stomach pain and vomiting.

Alarmed by the situation, the school headmaster promptly called an ambulance service (dial 108), and the affected students were rushed to Deoghar Sadar Hospital for treatment.

The children, who were reportedly served dal, rice, and potato-gourd curry, began showing symptoms of food poisoning within an hour.

Deputy Superintendent of Sadar Hospital, Dr Prabhat Ranjan, confirmed that all the children are now stable and under observation. "Their condition has improved significantly after treatment, and if there are no further complications, they will be discharged soon," he said.

In a shocking revelation, villagers alleged that a dead lizard was found in the food served to the children. This has raised serious concerns about the hygiene and quality control of the mid-day meal programme.

Following the incident, a team from the health department visited the school and collected food samples. The samples have been sent to a laboratory for testing, and further action will be taken based on the results.

This is not the first such incident reported in Jharkhand. In March this year, 16 children fell sick after consuming a mid-day meal in a primary school in Nayagaon under West Singhbhum district, where a 6-year-old girl, Ayushi Gop, tragically died during treatment.

Similarly, in September last year, 40 children had taken ill after a mid-day meal in Mohanpur village under Dumka district's Masalia block.

--IANS

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