NEW DELHI — In an unfortunate incident, at least 58 students fell ill after consuming food at two separate government schools in Telangana on Friday, prompting authorities to rush them to nearby hospitals.
The exact cause of the food poisoning was not immediately known. The affected students complained of vomiting, diarrhoea, and stomach pain, following which parents, villagers, and school staff arranged their immediate transportation to hospitals.
According to The New Indian Express, 16 girl students from the Telangana Minority Residential School in Baghlingampally were admitted to the government hospital at King Koti after reporting nausea and abdominal pain. All of them were later discharged.
Hospital Superintendent Dr Santosh Babu told TNIE, “The students were admitted in the afternoon with vomiting and nausea. All 16 are stable.”
Officials said the students began showing symptoms early on Friday, hours after consuming curd rice for dinner on Thursday. Local reports said that students had complained of a foul smell from one of the curries while the food was being served, but their concerns were allegedly ignored. Soon after, several students began vomiting and complained of stomach pain.
n a second incident, students at a government school in Chandra Nayak Thanda reportedly fell ill after consuming the mid-day meal on Friday.
Director of School Education Naveen Nicholas told TNIE, “The Hare Krishna Mission Foundation supplies mid-day meals to the school through a centralised kitchen. Around 30 students reported stomach pain within an hour of eating payasam served for lunch. They were taken to the Area Hospital in Kondapur, while a few were shifted to a private hospital and later discharged.”
An official statement later put the total number of affected students at 42, though earlier reports indicated that 58 students had fallen ill across both incidents.
Authorities said medical teams are closely monitoring the students and providing necessary treatment. While most students are reported to be stable, the condition of some is said to be critical, officials added.
