72 Bihar school children fall ill after mid-day meal

At least 72 children fell ill on Tuesday after having their mid-day meal at two government schools in Bihar, officials said.

Sixty children fell ill after consuming the meal at Mathia Middle School in Bhojpur, around 60 km from Patna.

In another incident, at least 12 children fell ill after having their mid-day meal at Musahar middle school in Aurai in Muzaffarpur, about 70 km from here.

The children complained of uneasiness after eating, followed by vomiting and loose motions and were admitted to the sub-divisional hospital in Jagdishpur where the condition of four of them is stated to be critical, a district official said.

Later, all of them were shifted to the Sadar hospital in Ara.

But in view of the deteriorating condition of four children, the district authorities have decided to refer them to Patna Medical College and Hospital for treatment.

"After treatment at the hospital, all the children will be discharged by evening," the official added.

The samples of the meals have been collected by police for forensic examination.

According to the officials, some children said a lizard was found in the mid-day meal served to them.

However, the doctors who examined the children did not find any sign of poison in their bodies.

In Muzaffarpur, children found a lizard in the meal that created panic. Twelve children were admitted to the hospital for treatment after they developed symptoms of vomiting and loose motions.

"All the children are out of danger and their condition is stable after preliminary treatment at the hospital," a district education official said.

In 2013, 23 students died after eating the mid-day meal at a primary school in Saran district.

In Bihar, 16 million students get food under the mid-day meal scheme daily, which covers 72,000 schools across the state.