In Kothapally village, Telangana, a school has come under fire for serving rice mixed with chilli powder as part of its mid-day meal. This incident has sparked widespread criticism from opposition leaders, who are calling for a thorough review of food quality in schools across the state.
On August 2, the mid-day meal agency at the school served students rice mixed with chilli powder and oil. The images of this meal quickly went viral on social media, leading to an outcry and complaints from parents. Many students reportedly suffered from stomachaches and fell ill after consuming the food.
Former Telangana Minister KT Rama Rao expressed his outrage on social media, condemning the Congress government for the poor quality of the meals. He highlighted the scrapping of a successful breakfast scheme introduced by the previous KCR government, which he claimed contributed to the current situation. “Is this the kind of atrocious food our school children deserve, Telangana CM? The KCR government had launched a wonderful breakfast scheme for school children that the Congress government has scrapped for no valid reason. Now, we are seeing these shocking reports. I request the Telangana CS to review the situation in all schools at the earliest,” KTR tweeted.
Former Health Minister Harish Rao also criticised the Congress government, attributing the incident to what he described as the negligent attitude of Revanth Reddy’s administration.
In response to the complaints, Nizamabad District Education Officer N. Durgaprasad, along with the mandal education officer, the headmaster of Complex School, and other officials, visited the school to conduct an inquiry. One of the teachers reported that many students had discarded the food, finding it bland and unappetising.
The district education officials have issued a stern warning to the meal service providers, emphasising that food quality must not be compromised. They have directed the agency to ensure that such issues do not recur and that all future meals meet the required standards.
As the investigation continues, the state government is under increasing pressure to address the concerns raised and to ensure that the quality of food served in schools is consistently high.
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