INDIA: Police say pesticides found in food items killed 23 children in eastern Bihar state

Record ID: 1376056

  • Title: INDIA: Police say pesticides found in food items killed 23 children in eastern Bihar state
  • Date: 20th July 2013
  • Summary: PATNA, BIHAR, INDIA (JULY 20, 2013) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (ANI-NO ACCESS BBC) ASSISTANT DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE, RAVINDER KUMAR, AT A NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) ADDITIONAL DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE, RAVINDER KUMAR, SAYING: "The forensic scientists have found the presence of monocrotophos and organic phosphorus compound in the samples of oil from the container, food remains on the platter and mixture of rice with vegetables in an aluminium utensil. Monocrotophos is used as a pesticide for agricultural purposes. It is very toxic to human beings and other animals."
  • Embargoed: 4th August 2013 21:01
  • Keywords:
  • Location: India
  • Country: India
  • Topics: General,Health
  • Reuters ID: LVADL1ISNBELE233GQA45OL0JSJB
  • Aspect Ratio: 4:3
  • Story Text: Police confirmed on Saturday (July 20) the presence of toxic pesticides in food that claimed the lives of 23 children in India's eastern state of Bihar.
    Following forensic tests the Assistant Director General of Bihar Police, Ravinder Kumar, said toxic material was present in oil that was used to cook the food in a government-run school in Chhapra District.
    "The forensic scientists have found the presence of monocrotophos and organic phosphorus compound in the samples of oil from the container, food remains on the platter and mixture of rice with vegetables in an aluminium utensil. Monocrotophos is used as a pesticide for agricultural purposes. It is very toxic to human beings and other animals," said Kumar in provincial the capital Patna.
    Children fell ill within minutes after eating lunch provided for by their school in the village of Gandaman. The free meals are part of a national scheme aimed at tackling malnutrition and encouraging children to attend school.
    The 23 children, aged four to 12, died after vomiting and convulsing from agonising stomach cramps. Death came so quickly for some that they died in their parents' arms while being taken to hospital.
    The police officer said that the intensity of the deadly contaminant was five times more concentrated than found in the commercial pesticide.
    "It was also observed in the data available in the FSL report that pick area of the poisonous substance in the oil was more than five times in comparison to the commercial preparation used," he added.
    Dozens of other children are being treated for food poisoning at a hospital in provincial capital Patna where their condition is said to be stable.
    Police are searching for the headmistress of the school in Gandaman village in Bihar, one of India's most impoverished states, who has disappeared, along with her family.
    Reuters reporters saw local officials raid the headmistress's home in Gandaman on Friday while residents crowded outside.
    One of the officials said it was the second such search of the house. In the first raid, police removed a 2-litre (68 U.S. fluid ounce) plastic container of mustard oil, a sack of rice, a bag of lentils, salt and spices. He would not say what more they were looking for on Friday.
    It is not yet clear where the headmistress bought the food for the free meals, cooked at a makeshift kitchen outside the one-room ramshackle school.
    Police said she left the village on Tuesday with her husband, a local businessman who owned a shopping complex of about 40 stores.
    The school provided free meals under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, the world's largest school feeding program involving 120 million children.
    The Indian government announced that it would set up an inquiry into the quality of food given to school pupils in the nation-wide free meal scheme.
  • Copyright Holder: ANI (India)
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