Over 100 Students Hospitalised After Suspected Food Poisoning At Telangana Welfare School

According to the New Indian Express, the students, all boarders at the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule BC Residential Welfare School for Girls in Uyyalawada, began experiencing bouts of vomiting, diarrhoea, and abdominal pain just hours after dinner. By nightfall, hospital beds at the Nagarkurnool Government General Hospital were lined with young students affected by food poisoning.

The doctor revealed that this was a textbook case of gastroenteritis, most likely linked to contaminated food or water. The institution, like many other state-run welfare schools, caters to students from historically marginalised communities. By Sunday evening, most of the girls were discharged, while three remained under observation. Food and water samples have been collected for lab testing, but officials haven’t yet provided a timeline for the report. With this case adding to the saga of similar horrific medical emergency cases, it’s fast becoming a matter of serious concern. 

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Political Authorities Demand Action

BRS leader and former Health Minister T Harish Rao arrived and pointed towards the pattern of such cases taking place at Gurukuls. He decided to make his case strong by pointing to recent cases of food contamination reported in Jagtial and Bhadradri Kothagudem. 

Telangana party president N Ramchander Rao visited the school and demanded an independent audit of food safety across all state-run hostels. He asked many important questions related to food safety at institutions and gave instructions for the initiation of a probe into the quality of rice, milk and other items, as stated in the New India Express.

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Despite mounting pressure, the state government has yet to issue a comprehensive response. Internal enquiries are reportedly underway, but for now, parents are left to make sense of what exactly their children were fed and why no one saw it coming. The girls, many of whom are still recovering physically, have become the latest collateral in a welfare system long plagued by blind spots.

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