The Telangana Education Commission (TEC) that inspected schools across the state found issues such as infestation of food material stored for long periods and poor quality of vegetables as they are procured at a low cost. The Commission also found that borewell water was being used for cooking and washing vessels, increasing the risk of food poisoning, The Times of India reported.
The TEC visited around 200 schools between November 29 and December 8 in the wake of recurring incidents of food poisoning in state-run residential schools. The decision was taken two days after 16-year-old student Shailaja died nearly a month after falling critically ill due to food poisoning. She was one of 60 students who had fallen ill at the residential school at Wankidi in Kumaram Bheem Asifabad district on October 30.
The TEC, which is set to submit its recommendations to the government, also blamed poor infrastructure in schools for bad hygiene. TEC member Ch Venkatesh told The Times of India that several schools lacked proper kitchens, washrooms, and compound walls. Some schools also did not have functional RO water treatment plants, which meant no access to clean drinking water, the TEC found.
Responding to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), the Telangana High Court too expressed serious concern over rising cases of suspected food poisoning among students at government-run schools. The court pulled up the state government for negligence and directed officials to collect samples of mid-day meals from all such schools for laboratory testing.
Following Shailaja’s death, the state government also constituted Task Forces for all the institutions. A three-member Task Force committee was directed to be set up for each school, comprising the Commissioner, Food Safety or food safety officer, the head of the department of the institution, and the district-level officer of the concerned institution. The Task Force committees were directed to be constituted for each school, welfare hostel, residential school, Anganwadi centre, and hospital to ensure food safety.