A shocking instance of sheer negligence has shattered the city today. In yet another case of food-poisoning through mid-day meal on Friday, as many as 70 school children were hospitalized. The children are the students of the Dr. Zakir Hussain Urdu Medium primary school, Bopodi. The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) educational board runs the school.

Under the provision of the Central Government, students are served the khichadi free of cost every day in the afternoon. After having this lunch, 70 students out of 349 were seriously down with stomach pain and vomiting. This made Miss. Sangeeta Tiwari, PMC school board chairman, inspect the food. The authorities were shocked to find flies, insects and making it even worse the small pieces of magnets in the khichdi which also smelled bad. The incident once again has put a question mark against the quality of the food being served under the scheme.

These 70 students were immediately taken to the Sahyadri Hospital at Bopodi. Fifty – seven of them were put under observation till the last report came. The rest have got a discharge after getting a timely treatment. The contract of preparing khichadi for this particular school was taken by a self help group.

The news got the wind in no time and shocked parents of the students rushed schoolwards. When being interviewed, a few of them couldn’t help their tears to see the condition of their children.

After a series of such serious incidents, the PMC has now taken the decision of suspending the mid day meal scheme in the present form for the time being. Fruits and other eatables are likely to replace cooked food. The PMC authorities have sent the proposal to the Municipal Commissioner Mr. Mahesh Zagade for approval. The PMC now wants to order the Urban Community Development (UCD) Department to provide food stuffs.

Meanwhile a police case has also been filed against the self help group involved in the preparation of bad food. Frequent instances of cooking bad quality food have made the PMC health department to take some stringent steps against this negligence. In fact after the SHG is with the cooking part, some of the teachers or the headmaster is supposed to taste the meal and then it should be served to the students. This is precisely the reason why even the school organization committee of the Dr. Zakir Hussain Urdu Medium primary school, Bopodi is facing the music.

- Yogesh Sapre