Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday, September 5, addressed the surge in food poisoning cases in Telangana’s government schools stating that he is deeply saddened and urged teachers to also eat with the students.
He further stated that he too will occasionally come share a meal with the students to instill people’s confidence in government schools. “There are 27 thousand government schools in Telangana, with 24 lakh students in them but there are 11 thousand private schools, with 34 lakh students studying in them…our government must have not done the right things to instill confidence in the children.” he stated.
Just two days earlier, on Wednesday, the Telangana High Court while hearing a Public Interest Litigation on the lack of proper facilities for students in schools, and violation of guidelines issued by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) expressed a similiar sentiment and asked teachers to eat with the students to help prevent cases of food poisoning and also improve accountability in the mid-day meal scheme.
Food poisoning at government schools in Telangana
Food poisoning cases in Telangana’s government schools have seen a drastic rise in the past year with reports of students falling ill, being hospitalised and even dying after consuming food prepared at these residential schools.
Some of the incidents that occurred last year include the death of a 16-year-old tribal student, C Shailaja, who was one among the the 63 hospitalised victims who fell ill after consuming dinner at the government-run tribal school in Kumrambheem Asifabad district.
Later on December 10, students suffered food poisoning at a government school in Nirmal district. Followed by 23 students of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Residential School in Karimnagar town, falling ill with stomach ache, vomiting and diarrhoea in the same month.
During the National Human Rights Commission’s (NHRC) public hearing on July 28 and 29 this year in Hyderabad, the commission ordered the state government to submit a detailed report on the alleged 886 food poisoning cases that led to the deaths of 48 students.
Around the same time, the Telangana Human Rights Commission took suo motu cognisance of a food poisoning incident at Mahatma Jyothiba Phule BC Welfare Gurukul School in Nagarkurnool, where about 100 students allegedly fell sick after eating stale food.
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