Maharashtra: 31 students hospitalised after lizard falls into food

Mumbai: As many as 31 students have been hospitalised after they fell ill following the consumption of lunch served at a school in Maharashtra’s Chandrapur Tuesday, officials said.

Students at Shri Ambru Naik Secondary Ashram School in Nagarala, located in the Jiwati Tehsil of Maharashtra’s Chandrapur district, were allegedly served the food despite a lizard falling into it while it was being cooked.

The meal was served to the students around 2.30 pm Tuesday. The reptile falling into it reportedly went unnoticed by the staff.

Shortly after eating, the students began to fall ill. A total of 31 students were admitted to a hospital for treatment after complaining of nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, and dizziness.

The affected students were immediately taken to the Primary Health Centre in Jivti for treatment. However, due to a lack of adequate medical facilities there, they were referred elsewhere and were then subsequently admitted to the Sub-District Rural Hospital in Rajura, where they are currently undergoing treatment.

According to medical officials, the condition of all the hospitalised students is currently stable, and they are being monitored by doctors. The incident has raised serious questions regarding the functioning of the Ashram school administration.

Moreover, it has sparked outrage among parents and villagers against the school administration as they alleged that the lives of innocent students could have been endangered due to the school administration’s negligence.

The parents and locals have demanded an impartial inquiry into the matter and strict action against the guilty staff members and the institution’s administrators.

Currently, the case is being investigated by the Education Department and the police.

Officials said that only after the probe will it be ascertained whether the food was served to the students despite a lizard having fallen into it, and whose negligence is responsible for the incident.

Further, questions are being raised over the monitoring of the quality and safety of the food provided to the children at the Ashram School.

In a similar incident, more than 30 children fell ill after consuming a mid-day meal at a government school in Sanwer area of Madhya Pradesh’s Indore district August 22.