Nabarangpur: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued a notice to the Chief Secretary directing him to compensate those who were given toxic food in their mid-day meals July 5, 2014. According to reports, six students, including Jarina Harijan of Ashish Bhawan Project Upper Primary School, had become ill after they consumed poisonous food during mid-day meals at the school. Later, the six students were admitted to Nabarangpur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH).
A case (203/14) was also registered with Nabarangpur police following which the education department and the police probed the matter.
A Bhawanipatna-based human rights activist, Dillip Kumar Dash, had filed a complaint with the NHRC demanding compensation for the victims and action against the accused. The commission had also registered a case (2784/18/10/2014).
The NHRC had issued a notice to the state government, based on which the School and Mass Education Department had written a letter May 23, 2018 to the commission, stating that action will be taken against the concerned Assistant Teacher.
The Education Department had also informed the commission that a case was also registered in this connection.
Meanwhile, a sample of the mid-day meal was sent to the state Forensic Science Laboratory in Bhubaneswar.
The students were discharged after nine days, and Headmistress Saubhangini Nayak and Assistant Teacher Sanjibani Kakra were suspended on the same day, the School and Mass Education Department had informed the NHRC in the letter.
The human rights of the six students were violated due to the negligence of the school authorities, and the commission under Sections 18(a)(i) of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, issued a notice to the Chief Secretary, asking him to show cause as to why monetary compensation should not be paid to the victims.
The commission also asked the Chief Secretary to file his response by March 9, 2019.
PNN
