Over 100 girl students were hospitalized due to suspected food poisoning as they fell ill after having lunch at their residential school in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra, an official said on Thursday. The incident occurred on Wednesday at an ‘ashram shala’ (residential school for tribal children) situated in Sode village within the Dhanora taluka of the district, he said.
Dr. Pramod Khandate, the civil surgeon of Gadchiroli district, said, “The students were served lunch at the school around 12:30 pm on Wednesday. Shortly after consuming their meal, they began experiencing symptoms such as vomiting, abdominal pain, and headaches.”
“In total, 109 students were admitted to a government hospital. Subsequently, 40 of them were transferred to the general hospital in Gadchiroli, while the remaining 69 are undergoing treatment at the Dhanora rural hospital,” he stated. Khandate added that all of them are still in the hospital.
He mentioned that over 350 female students study at this ashram school, and samples of both food and water have been sent to a laboratory for examination.