25 children fall ill after drinking milk served with midday meal

Ghaziabad: At least 25 students had to be admitted to a health centre after they drank milk served during midday meal at a primary school in Loni on Wednesday morning.By evening, doctors said most of the students — from classes I to V — were stable and would be discharged soon. Earlier in the day, they complained of stomach ache and headache after having a meal of milk, curry and rice at Prem Nagar Primary School. Some of them even started vomiting.“Around 11am, I got a call from some officials in the school and came to know that my daughter had been complaining of stomach ache and nausea. By the time we reached the school, they had been taken to the Loni health centre. Doctors said she had been given medicines and was stable,” said the mother of a Class V student. Some parents staged a protest outside the school, raising questions on the quality of food being served to students. “Earlier too, my son had similar complications after having milk served at the school. So, this time, I insisted on tasting my milk myself. It did not affect me though, maybe because of my immunity. But when I tried to bring a glass of milk out of the school compound, the headmistress stopped me,” said Tarannum, one of the protesting parents.Most of the students who were affected were from classes IV and V. One such student said the milk tasted too sour. “I did not like it at all”. A team led by food safety officer Anshul Pandey visited the school after complaints from parents.“The students complained of stomach ache and nausea. We collected samples of the milk and rice served to them and sent them to Lucknow for testing their purity. The report is likely in 15 days,” Pandey said.Arun Dixit, the Loni SDM, iterated him. “After getting a flurry of complaints, we had to call the chief medical officer and the food safety officer. The food samples are being tested. We will initiate action depending on the findings of the report,” he added.Bhavtosh Shankhdhar, the CMO, said the students were stable. “They were taken to the health centre in Loni in ambulances and given emergency medicines. All of them should be discharged in some time.”Asked where the milk served to students in the morning was sourced from, Dixit said, “There is no particular supplier for this school. They usually collect raw materials from local vendors. During the inspection in the morning, we found an empty milk packet in the kitchen. That has been sent for examination as well.”Usha Rani, the school principal, said she personally checked the quality of food served to students. “This school has been serving midday meals for the past seven years. This is the first time that such a thing has happened. No matter how good the quality of food we serve, some parents will always find fault in it.”OP Yadav, the basic shiksha adhikari, said they would take action once the reports were ready.