15 students hospitalized due to food poisoning at Tandur

Mild tension prevailed at the hospital after BRS and BJP workers staged protest and demanded stern action against the staff for their negligence.

Vikarabad: About 15 students were hospitalized on Tuesday due to food poisoning at Saipur in Tandur in the district. The students of Tribal Welfare Girls Hostel, Saipur had dinner in the hostel on Monday and complained of uneasiness, stomach ache and vomiting on Tuesday morning.

The school staff then shifted them to the government hospital at Tandur. Videos of students getting treatment in the hospital and complaining about poor quality food being served to them at the hostel have gone viral on social media platforms.

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In one of the videos, an eighth standard student is seen saying that despite repeated complaints to the teachers about half-cooked and poor quality food being served, they did not bother to address the issue. Parents also found fault with the hostel staff for neglecting their wards health and serving poor quality food.

Mild tension prevailed at the hospital after BRS and BJP workers staged protest and demanded stern action against the staff for their negligence. They also raised slogans against the Congress government. Sensing trouble, police deployed more personnel at the hospital and denied permission for outsiders to get into the premises.

It may be recalled that following the Maganoor food poisoning incident, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had warned that stern action would be initiated against staff, if they failed to ensure quality food being served to the students. However, incidents of students falling ill due to food poisoning and getting hospitalized continue to occur. Last month, the State government had also decided to constitute institution-level Food Safety Committees to oversee cooking and the food served in various institutions to prevent food contamination and food-borne diseases.

As per the orders issued by Chief Secretary A Santhi Kumari, the Committee was to inspect the store room and kitchen before cooking each meal and ensure quality of provisions and hygiene in the kitchen. After the meals were prepared, committee members were directed to taste the food for quality and other factors and then the food was be served to the students.