School food poisoning case - catering company warned

School food poisoning case - catering company warned

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Feb 11, 2012 : K. N. Vijay Prakash, the chief executive officer of ZP, said that Seva Meals, the Jeppu-based caterer, who provides meals to St. Joseph’s Higher Primary School, whose students had taken ill after lunch, has been let off with a warning.

 

Seva Meals supplies meals to 27 schools in Mangalore. Mr. Prakash has directed the education department to send samples of the food for testing. He said that if such a thing happens again, the contract signed with Seva Meals will be cancelled.

The students of St. Joseph’s Higher Primary School, who were rushed to hospital when they took ill after having lunch on Feb 9 Thursday, have now recovered and returned home.

Over 20 children were admitted to hospital on Thursday with food poisoning. Aysha, a student of Std. VII, said that some of her classmates began complaining of stomach ache and nausea about an hour after lunch. She said that she did not eat the rice as it smelt bad.

Ashraf, a flower vendor in the neighborhood, spotted several children vomiting and complaining of stomach ache and the school staff giving them water. They had already called a doctor and were waiting for his arrival. He said that he and a few other vendors in the locality helped move several children to Fr. Muller Hospital on auto rickshaws.

When parents and caregivers came to know of this episode, they rushed to the school in large numbers. Even parents of unaffected students rushed to the school. A 40-year-old construction worker complained that nobody in the school guided him.

When the crowd began swelling in its out patient department, the authorities of Fr. Muller Hospital decided to close the OPD gate to let in only children who needed treatment. The crowds and the chaos upset the children badly and many of them started crying. The situation worsened when the school had to answer embarrassing questions about the food served to the kids. People also began talking about the funny smell of the rice and sambar served to the kids.

Anxious parents demanded that the school take stern action against the Jeppu-based caterer who had provided the food. According to Sr. Lillis, the vice president of the Bethany Education Society, which runs the school, the rice in one of the containers had gone bad and was not served to the kids.

She also assured that all the 20 children who had developed problems after consuming the meals are now fine.