SDO Madhavi Mishra inspected midday meal facilities at Ramdas Bhatta on Tuesday after 15 students of Aryavedic Madhya Vidyalaya, Kasidih fell ill and were rushed to MGM Medical College and Hospital fearing food poisoning due to a lizard allegedly found in midday meal on Monday. She went to Ramdas Bhatta based centralised kitchen run by Annamrita Foundation, a wing of Iskcon. She ordered strict vigil and hygiene for cooking food.
She met headmaster of the school Ashok Kumar Singh who took 15 students between KG and II who had consumed the food by then. The school has 243 students. SDO said steps need to be taken to ensure that proper hygiene is maintained. Some students along with their parents had come to the MGM Hospital. Some were discharged after an initial round of check up.
The Iskcon Food Relief Foundation started its pilot project in the city on April 2012 though the foundation stone was laid by chief minister Arjun Munda in July 2011. The Rs 4.28 crore kitchen is a collaboration with Tata Steel. Tata Steel provides the infrastructure that would be required for successful rollout of the Mid-Day Meal Programme while ISKCON Food Relief Foundation, an NGO that provides top-class Mid-Day Meal Services in various towns and cities across the country, takes charge of the day-to-day management of the programme.