NHRC notice to Bihar government over Bagaha midday meal incident

Patna, Feb 7 (IANS) The National Human Right Commission (NHRC) has issued notice to the Bihar government and asked it to file an action taken report pertaining to the case of 184 children who fell ill after consuming adulterated midday meals in Bagaha subdivision of the state’s West Champaran district a couple of days ago.

The apex human rights body asked the state Chief Secretary to reply, within four weeks, about the preventive measures it has taken so that no such incident would occur in future.

The NHRC officials have claimed that the students complained about the smell of kerosene oil in the midday meals served to them but the school administration ignored them.

The incident occurred in a government middle school located at Bansgaon Parsauni village in Bagaha subdivision on Monday. Soon after the meal, many students started vomiting and complained of stomach ache.

The news spread soon in the village and the parents of the students reached there and took their children to the Ramnagar common health centre and later to the sub-divisional hospital Bagaha.

Meanwhile, the Bihar Education Department has suspended the Principal and cook of the school.