Expressing sorrow at the death of over 20 children in Bihar due to spurious midday meal, HRD Minister M M Pallam Raju said on Wednesday that the incident looked like a case of contaminated food and asked states to exercise caution while implementing the scheme.
"I came to know about the sad incident where 20 have died. I have taken serious note of it. Our additional secretary has rushed to the spot to have a first hand report. It looks like a case of contamination of food but we are awaiting forensic report," Raju said.
"This is an example where we should exercise caution. We will know the forensic report by today evening," he said. The HRD Ministry has asked for a report of the incident from the Bihar government while the Union School Education Secretary has spoken to Bihar Chief Secretary on the issue.
Terming the incident as "unfortunate", Minister of State for HRD Jitin Prasada said it should not be politicised. "The mid-day meal scheme guidelines say the cooked food should be tested by two adults before serving, while the teachers should also look into the quality of food and the cleanliness of the utensils," he said.
Prasada said the monitoring mechanism should be strengthened as it is the responsibility of the district administration and the village heads to ensure its proper implementation.
The mid-day meal programme is one of the largest programmes in the world, serving hot cooked food to over 10 crore children in more than 11 lakh schools across the country.
One girl Kanti Kumari, a student of class IV who is admitted to the paediatric ward of PMCH, recalled that when students complained that the food tasted bad, the school head mistress Meena Devi rebuked them and asked to finish the meal. "As we felt pain in the stomach, the head mistress asked us to go home. I fell unconscious on the way," she said.
The woman cook Manju Devi, who is also being treated at PMCH, said the ingredients for cooking the meal were provided to her by the husband of the school's head mistress. Manju Devi's three children, including two sons and a daughter, are with her in the PMCH.
Amarjit Singh, additional secretary in Union HRD ministry, who has come to Patna in wake of the midday meal tragedy, visited PMCH on Wednesday along with state Principal Secretary (Health) Vyasji and sought details from doctors about the health of the victims.
RJD President Lalu Prasad also visited PMCH to meet the children. Describing the incident as "tragic", Prasad blamed Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for the deaths.
The RJD chief told reporters at the hospital that despite regular complaints about midday meal scheme in different parts of the state, the Nitish Kumar government initiated no action. "Nitish Kumar is busy saving his chair and fighting with its erstwhile NDA partner BJP and has left masses on mercy of god," Prasad said.
Prasad alleged that a minister in the state government was supplying material for the midday meal scheme through an NGO and demanded probe against him.
BJP Vice President C P Thakur, himself a doctor, who visited PMCH, told reporters it appears to be a case of acute poisoning. He said as per reports traces of organo phoshphrous have been found in the meal served to children which is poisonous.
Demanding action against the accused, Bihar Congress chief Ashok Chaudhary said at PMCH that his party has in the past pointed irregularities in midday meal scheme in the state.
Hitting out at Nitish Kumar government, the state PCC chief said the Bihar government cannot escape the blame and should initiate action against the district administration for handling the situation in an "insensitive" manner.
Some women groups staged protest in Patna and also attacked the Midday meal scheme state office. The agitated women broke flower pots in the office and also damaged table, chair and other properties.
Youth Congress workers led by its former state president Lallan Kumar and youth leader Rohit Kumar burnt effigy of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at Dak Bunglow chowk in the state capital.
A Chhapra report said that angry villagers attacked the government primary school at Dharmasatii Gandavan village in Mashrakh block and broke furniture and the oven on which the meal was cooked. The head mistress of the school is absconding with her family.
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