DIBRUGARH, Sept 27 � At least 98 school children fell ill after having mid-day meal in Borborooah LP School near here today. The students, all below 10 years, complained of stomach ache and vomitting while a few experienced giddiness and fell on the ground. All the students were rushed to the Assam Medical College and Hospital.
The school children, mostly of the tea garden workers of Borborooah tea estate, were served boiled rice and mixed potato-nutrela curry as their mid-day meal. However, most of the students out of 260 school children, did not have the served meal. �When we saw a few students of the lower classes fainting , vomitting and others complaining of stomach upset after the meal, we did not have the food,� Jitul Kamar, a class IV student and son of tea garden worker Kundan Kamar, told this newspaper. He said some of the students from Class III also refused the served meal after the commotion.
Deputy Superintendent of Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dr Amrit Baruah said children were recuperating and added that all were stable. Meanwhile, DN Bangthai, Joint Director of Health Services, has initiated examination of the food item, rice, potato, nutrela and the water of the school tubewell. Bangthai has suspected contamination of toxic chemicals with the food. �Since workers did use the school tubewell after spraying chemicals in the plantations for washing, there is possibility that chemicals may have polluted the tubewell water, which was later used for cooking,� he said.
Ajoy Rajowar, an assistant teacher, said that the students had meals from the same stock yesterday and even before but nothing had happened. �We are surprised about the development,� he said. Rajowar also said that Ghana Kanta Dutta, a teacher of the school, who travels everyday from Sivasagar for his duty here, also complained of stomach trouble while returning back. Dutta also had the same meal along with the students.
Meanwhile, the tea garden workers and guardians of the school children had crowded the entrance of the casualty department of AMC. Congress workers were seen distributing water bottles to the affected children. BJP MLA Prasanta Phukan was also present among the crowds to sympathise with the children. A team of police personnel were seen loitering around the medical college campus since this afternoon, to prevent any unruly behaviour following the incident.