Karnataka / Dead baby snake found in meal in Karnataka school, 50 students fall sick

Yadgir: Nearly 50 students from a residential school in Karnataka’s Yadgir district were rushed to a hospital Thursday due to food poisoning, with a couple of them being put under observation for a few hours. Later, a dead baby snake was found in their meal.

The incident took place at Abbe Tumkoor Vishwaradhya Vidyavardhak Residential School, district administration officials confirmed to The Indian Express. “As students began vomiting while having breakfast, nearly 50 of them were brought to the District Government General Hospital. However, except for two aged 12 and 15, the rest were sent back after preliminary treatment,” Dr Indumathi Patil, District Health Officer, said. She added that the two students who were admitted were discharged after a few hours and that they were “absolutely fine.”

When contacted, a staff member of the school said the students began vomiting one after the other while having Uppittu, which is a cooked porridge of semolina. “As soon as we observed this in the first few students, we stopped serving the food and rushed them to the Primary Health Centre at Mudnal. Doctors there referred us to the district hospital,” the staff member explained.

Meanwhile, during an internal inquiry, staff members at the school checked the students’ meal to find a dead baby snake, which is now thought to have caused the issue. “We were shocked to see this as our colleagues are extremely careful while preparing food here. However, further inquiry is on and the management has promised to take strict action if any error is found on the part of the staff,” the staff member added.

School authorities added that parents and guardians of the students were informed of their health status and were ensured that their wards will be taken care of.