KOTA: At least 27 students fell ill after allegedly consuming a mid-day meal at Govt Upper Primary School in Poonia Devli village in Kota Monday.Students from Classes 1 to 8 complained of nausea, vomiting, stomach ache and dizziness around 1pm, as the school day was ending. Of them, 21 with severe symptoms were taken to Kota, where 17 were brought to New Medical College Hospital and four to a private hospital.Officials and school staff said 110 of the school’s 130 enrolled students were present when lunch was served. The meal included a pumpkin dish. About two hours after eating, children began showing symptoms of suspected food poisoning.School principal Chandra Prakash said the children complained of complications as they were about to leave for home when the bell rang, adding that all were stable.“My son Rahul, a fourth-grade student, felt dizzy after eating the pumpkin curry and collapsed. He managed to come home, but his condition deteriorated rapidly, so we brought him to the dispensary and then here,” said the mother of one affected student, noting that no teachers initially accompanied them to the medical facility.District education officer (Elementary) Rup Singh Meena visited the hospital and said 27 students reported discomfort, with most stable and under observation, and four to five requiring admission.He said the mid-day meal was prepared and supplied by Annapurna Sahakari Samiti to eight to nine other schools and all students consumed the food, but no other school reported similar complaints.Meena said it was too early to identify the mid-day meal as the sole cause and that investigations were examining whether extreme heat, humidity or local water contamination may have contributed.He said medical teams were deployed to the school and conclusions would be drawn after laboratory and medical test reports.
