Tamil Nadu shock: 40 students fall ill after dead lizard found in government sambar school; 2 cooks are relieved | Today’s news
A dead lizard was reportedly discovered in a batch of sambar served as part of mid-day meal at a government school in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruvallur district on Friday, after which around 40 students are said to have fallen ill.
The food was prepared under the Tamil Nadu government’s breakfast program for the students of Kottaiyur High School in Kadambathur block. Following the incident, Tiruvallur Collector S. Kavitha dismissed two cooks, Arthi and Dhanalakshmi, from service, The Hindu reported.
The affected children were reportedly taken to hospital after complaining of vomiting, dizziness and other symptoms. The incident was reported at the village school, where about 50 students were enrolled.
The collector also ordered disciplinary action against the school principal, teacher and the block development officer responsible for overseeing the breakfast programme.
Initial findings indicated that the school’s kitchen, located in a shed, may have allowed the lizard to enter the food, officials said. The school was instructed to thoroughly clean the kitchen, get rid of insects and paint the premises. According to reports, teachers were also told to take samples of meals before distributing them to students as a precautionary measure.
Delhi school lunch incident
In a similar incident, a dead lizard was discovered in the midday meal served at a government school in west Delhi’s Hari Nagar, prompting police to register a case and collect samples of the food for testing, an officer said in July, according to PTI.
After the incident, there were no reported cases of food poisoning or illness among students or school staff, according to police.
The incident took place on July 3 at Sarvodaya Coeeducational Vidyalaya in Hari Nagar when food was being distributed, police said in a statement.
By the time the contamination was discovered, two or three servings had already been served. An aide at the school subsequently spotted a dead lizard in the food, after which the distribution was immediately stopped so that no more students could consume it.
Police officers took samples of suspected contaminated food for laboratory examination. A case under Section 125 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with negligent acts endangering human life or personal safety of others, was registered at the Hari Nagar police station. The investigation is continuing, the police officer said.
Palghar cake contamination case
Meanwhile, 11 people, including seven children, were admitted to hospital in Maharashtra’s Palghar district after they reportedly developed symptoms of food poisoning after eating a birthday cake that allegedly contained a dead lizard, police said last month.
Authorities, along with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), have begun investigating the bakery in Nalasopara that supplied the cake. The cake was ordered for a woman’s birthday party on Saturday, the official said.
