In Bihar, 34 Students Hospitalised After Detergent Powder Served As Salt

Thirty-four students were taken to hospital after allegedly consuming detergent powder that was mistakenly served instead of salt with the mid-day meal at a government school in Bihar’s Nalanda district on Tuesday.

The children, 17 boys and 17 girls, were admitted to Biharsharif Sadar Hospital after reporting throat and stomach pain. The district administration said they were examined by doctors and were healthy and out of danger.

The incident occurred at Middle School, Parasi, in Noorsarai block while the students were being served their mid-day meal.

According to The Indian Express, school headmaster Shailendra Kumar Singh said the mistake happened when a student asked for additional salt. A cook allegedly picked up detergent powder instead and added it to the student’s food.

How The Mistake Happened

The headmaster said the school serves meals in several sittings. During the second sitting, a student, who was identified as the granddaughter of a school cook, reportedly asked for more salt.

After the cook mistakenly used detergent powder, other students who saw the incident also asked for extra salt and were allegedly served the same substance, Singh said in a video cited by The Indian Express.

The problem came to light after some students began complaining of pain in their throats and stomachs.

The school management initially gave the affected children warm salt water before taking them for medical care. They were first taken to the Dental College at Bhagan Bigha and later referred to Biharsharif Sadar Hospital.

Meal Served To 132 Students

A Nalanda district official as quoted by The Indian Express said, the meal had been prepared and supplied by the Ekta Shakti Foundation from its centralised kitchen at Ramghat in Nagarnausa.

Two cooks and two teachers at the school had eaten the food before it was served to the students, the official said. The meal, consisting of rice and soybean-potato curry, was served to all 132 students at around 12.30 pm.

Thirty-four children were taken to Sadar Hospital at around 2.15 pm after developing health problems, according to the official.

The centralised kitchen provides mid-day meals to around 23,000 children in 206 schools in Chandi, Nagarnausa and Noorsarai blocks, the official said.

Officials from the education department and local administration visited the hospital after the children were admitted. Bihar Minister Shravan Kumar also met the students and directed doctors to provide them with proper treatment.

The district administration said all the children were healthy and out of danger after medical examination.

Officials said samples of the meal would be examined. No FIR or complaint had been registered in the matter at the time of reporting.