35 students fall ill after taking mid-day meal in West Bengal

Thirty-five students were hospitalised as they fell ill allegedly after consuming mid-day meal at a girls secondary school at Madhabdihi of this district, health officials said today.
The students vomitted and complained of stomach pain after returning homes from the school on Friday. Soon they were admitted to a Primary Health Centre and were released the next day, a PHC official said.
Returning home, 17 students again complained of earlier problems and they were taken to the Burdwan Medical College and Hospital where 10 were admitted today, Medical Superintendent-cum-Vice Principal Utpal Dawn said.
Block Development Officer (BDO) Bappa Goswami said he had been informed about the incident and he would visit the place to know the exact cause of the illness.

The teacher in-charge of the school, Kalyani Gupta, however said that the mid-day meal was served after being tested by teachers. "Something else might have triggered the illness," she told reporters after meeting the ailing students at the hospital.
Earlier on Friday, Gupta was locked up in her chamber by guardians following the mid-day meal incident. She was rescued by police in the midnight. The following day the guardians again attacked the school and drove out its teachers, school administration officials said.