120 children fall ill after consuming food at school hostel

Altogether 120 children had fallen ill due to food poisoning at a government-run school in Bihar's Lakhisarai district, police said today. The students at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, in Barahaiya area of the district, complained of nausea and stomach ache last evening after consuming dinner at the school hostel, Superintendent of Police Kartikeya Sharma said. Many also vomited multiple times, following which they were rushed to a local hospital by school authorities, the SP said.

"The students were served rice and paneer curry for dinner. Soon after taking their food, they started feeling uneasy and sick. Of the 120 affected students, 70 were taken to Barahaiya-based referral hospital," he explained. The doctors attending to the children said they were out of danger, Sharma said, adding that 20 students, who complained of discomfort even after treatment at Barahaiya hospital, were admitted to Sadar hospital as a "precautionary measure".

District Magistrate Shobhendra Kumar Choudhary, who visited the school premises this morning, called for a probe into the incident. He also ordered closure of the school for the next three days and said "stern action" would be taken against those found guilty in the case.