BRS urges Telangana HC to step in over recurring food poisoning incidents in residential schools

HYDERABAD

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has urged the Chief Justice of Telangana High Court to take suo motu cognisance of the recurring incidents of food poisoning in residential schools across Telangana. The appeal comes in the wake of 111 students from the Jyotiba Phule Backward Classes Welfare Residential School for Girls in Uyyalawada, Nagarkurnool district, being hospitalised on Sunday.

BRS leader T. Harish Rao, who visited the school along with party leaders Marri Janardhan Reddy, C. Laxma Reddy, Guvvala Balaraju and others, interacted with students and parents at the hospital. He expressed concern that such a serious incident had occurred in Chief Minister A.Revanth Reddy’s home district, despite the CM also holding the Education portfolio.

“When the government can spend ₹1 lakh for a meal during the Miss World beauty pageant, why can’t it provide safe food to students in residential schools,” Mr.Harish Rao questioned.

He further criticised the government for what he termed as a political vendetta, asking if erasing the legacy of former CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao meant neglecting students to the extent of illness and even death. Not a day goes by without distressing news about residential school students, he said, adding that while the government has been talking about integrated schools for the past 20 months, not a single one has yet been established.

BRS leader T. Harish Rao interacting with a student of the residential school at Uyyalawada in Nagarkurnool district on Sunday.
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By Arrangement

Mr.Harish Rao said that repeated incidents of food poisoning in government residential schools were eroding public trust, leading to a drop in admissions as parents were increasingly reluctant to send their children to such institutions. He urged the Chief Minister to introspect and take immediate steps to improve conditions, at the very least, by ensuring hygienic living environments and safe, nutritious food for students.

He also interacted with students at the school and blamed the ongoing issues on the government’s negligence and administrative failure, pointing out that such incidents have been frequently reported across the State over the past 20 months.

He alleged that authorities rushed students to the hospital only after learning about the BRS team’s visit, and in some cases, children were treated under trees on the school campus itself, making them hold IV fluid bottles in their hands. He further claimed that over 100 students have died in residential schools during this period, even as he underscored the urgent need for intervention.