80 students fell ill after taking mid day meal in Barpeta

Guwahati : At least 80 students of two schools in Lower Assam's Barpeta district on Thursday fell ill after taking mid day meal and they were admitted to nearby hospital, officials said.

According to the reports, at least 60 students of Hahchara Primary School in the district fell ill after eating their mid day meal and they were admitted to the hospital after they started vomiting and also complained of fever and diarrhea.

A district administration official said that, their conditions are stable now and they are under physician observation.

On the other hand, at least 20 students of Mandia Higher Secondary School fell ill after taking mid day meal and they were immediately rushed to a government run hospital.

Meanwhile, the district administration has directed the hospital authority to take all necessary steps to provide better treatment to the affected children.

The incidents happended during the period of Gunotsav programme launched by the Assam government in eight districts including Barpeta covering over 9.11 lakh primary students.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)