Water to blame for food poisoning cases?

Medical college mess facilities untidy, say students

On Wednesday, 30 people, including B.Sc. Nursing students of the College of Nursing on the Government Medical College Hospital campus here and some staff members, were admitted to the hospital owing to food poisoning. The hostel and the mess were closed down for two weeks after the incident. Two days later, 15 persons, some of them M.Sc. Nursing students and the others members of the staff, took ill after having food from the staff mess and the Indian Coffee House.

The reasons for the recurring cases of food poisoning reported from the mess facilities on the college campus are unclear.

Food Safety Officer Anil Kumar told The Hindu that water supplied from a common tank to all the hostels and hospitals in the region could be the source of infection. A team of the Food Safety Authority, which included Mr. Anil Kumar, had visited the campus and collected samples of food and water. These had been sent to the Regional Analytical Laboratory for investigation, and the results were expected on Monday.

The team had directed the mess authorities to clean up the kitchen and its premises, and obtain a licence for their operations as per the revised food safety norms, Mr. Anil Kumar said.

Meanwhile, there have been complaints from the students that food articles past their expiry date are being used in the hostel mess facilities. It has been alleged that the mess facilities, two of which are run by the same person, are untidy and rats are spotted often in the kitchens. There is no mechanism to ensure the quality of the food. The lackadaisical attitude of the wardens has promoted corruption among the mess authorities, the students say.

The water supply system is also under the scanner. The pipelines that supply water to various institutions on the campus are around 40 years old and mostly rusted. They leak at various places, giving rise to the possibility of dirt entering them through the cracks.

The drains near the hostels are clogged with garbage and dirty water, and pose a threat to the health of the students. The authorities are turning a blind eye to the students’ safety, they allege.