Food poisoning continues to plague residential schools and hostels in Telangana

Hyderabad: The recent incident of food poisoning at the Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) in Bheemgal — wherein 100 girl students fell ill after Monday dinner — has, again, put the spotlight on the poor state of affairs and official laxity concerning food preparation across residential schools and hostels in the state.

Sources said that the hostel was in poor shape, with unhygienic conditions prevailing in the kitchen and near washrooms.

Nizamabad district medical and health officer (DMHO) Dr Sudarshan told Deccan Chronicle: “This is clearly a case of food contamination.

We have collected food and water samples and sent them to labs for testing.

Moreover, we conducted an inspection of the hostel and found that the
cooking area was very unhygienic. The area where water is stored and
utensils are washed is also very unclean. Such conditions can definitely
lead to food poisoning.”

Dr Sudarshan said that besides food, water was also a major source of
contamination, especially in the rainy season, as it can turn breeding
ground for mosquitoes and subsequently, many infections.

Sources said that poor sanitation, contaminated drinking water and
poor-quality ingredients further degraded the food served to students, with midday meal workers saying that the food supplies they received for cooking were of poor quality.

A midday meal worker at Shamshabad told Deccan Chronicle that food grains — wheat, rice, and pulses — supplied to the schools were of poor quality. The rice had a bad smell, containing insects and stones, in a rancid state, the worker said.

“We maintain hygiene while cooking, but the grain quality is very poor,
which might not be making a nutritious meal for the kids. The inspection of food is also done only once every two or three months. If anything goes wrong, it is always us who are blamed,” the worker said.

Past incidents:

Sept. 2022: 31 students of a minority school in Komaram-Bheem Asifabad fall ill. Eight staffers were subsequently suspended

Sept. 2022: 30 students of TSWREIS (Gurukul Boys’ School) in Mordoddi of Dubbak in Siddipet fall ill

July 2023: 36 girl students of a tribal welfare girls’ school in Mahbubad
fall ill, suffering diarrhoea, vomiting and stomach ache