MAPUSA
Forty-five students of two schools in Mapusa fell ill after consuming mid-day meals on Friday, prompting the State government to suspend the licence of Sriram Self Help Group, Colvale.
The affected students were shifted to North Goa District Hospital and kept under observation for two hours and then discharged.
Thirty-eight students of Janata High School and seven students of Ganesh Vidya Mandir, Ganeshpuri felt nauseated and uneasy after consuming the mid-day meals provided in the schools during the recess.
“At around 11.30 am, some students from Std 5 and Std 8 complained of nausea. As soon as we received the complaints, we shifted the students to the North Goa District Hospital and informed the Assistant District Educational Inspector (ADEI) office, Mapusa,” said Ratnakar Chatim, Headmaster of Janata High School.
A source from the school’s management said that the incident did not appear to be serious but the management did not want to take chances and therefore shifted the students to the hospital.
Officials of the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) rushed to the schools and began investigation into the matter. The FDA officials have collected samples of the mid-day meal from both the schools. They also took samples of raw material from manufacturing units.
Sources informed that green peas broth (vatanyachi bhaji) and bread were supplied to Janata High School while kabuli choneachi bhaji was supplied to Ganesh Vidya Mandir.
Food Safety Officers, Rajaram Patel, Madhav Kavlekar and Atul Dessai conducted the inspection and were assisted by Ramesh Verenkar and Ganesh Gaonkar.
