Nineteen pupils of Kazipara Government Primary School in Tepriganj union, Debiganj upazila, Panchagarh, were admitted to the upazila health complex after drinking packaged milk supplied under the school feeding programme. They came in with dizziness, stomach pain, cramps and weakness.
As the milk was handed out at midday on Monday, 5 October, teachers noticed holes in some packets of the "RD" brand of Rangpur Dairy and Food Products Limited, and milk curdled like yoghurt in others. They photographed the packets and sent the pictures to Monowar Hossain, the company official in charge of the programme.
Teacher Taslima Khatun said staff had asked for the milk not to be distributed, but Monowar Hossain came to the school, drank some himself, said nothing was wrong and told the children to drink it. Pupils then began falling ill one after another; by 7pm about 19 had been admitted.
Monir Hossain, a fourth-grader, said his head and stomach began to hurt right after drinking the milk and he was brought to hospital because he could not stand.
Panchagarh Civil Surgeon Dr Mizanur Rahman said one child was admitted first and parents then brought in others. All are stable, many are well, and some are being kept under observation, he said.
Debiganj upazila executive officer Indrajit Saha said milk samples would be sent to Dhaka for testing and an inquiry committee formed, and action would follow if negligence was proved.
Several other newspapers reported the same incident. The report is by Ittefaq Digital.
Photo: Desibau / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Ittefaq
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