More than 100 students fell sick in India’s northeastern town of Mokama after eating the school lunch containing dead snake.
According to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), more than 100 students fell sick in the northeastern town of Mokama after eating the school meal last week. It was reported that the school cook served the food to about 500 children after removing a dead snake from it, Times of India reported.
The NHRC has demanded local police to provide a “detailed” report of the incident within two weeks, which is expected to include the health status of the affected children, the NHRC statement said in a report.
As per experts, the most common health risk of consuming such contaminated food is bacterial contamination. Dead animals, including snakes, rapidly become breeding grounds for harmful bacteria such as Salmonella, Clostridium, and E. coli and these can cause severe food poisoning, with symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and dehydration.
The idea of midday meals or lunch at schools is to provide essential nutrition to millions of children across India, improving health and learning outcomes. As per experts, it was found that balanced meals help fight malnutrition and support physical and cognitive development of growing kids.
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