At Least 137 nursing and paramedical students took ill from suspected food poisoning at a private hostel in Karnataka’s Mangaluru on Monday.

These students have been admitted to private hospitals across Mangaluru according to City police commissioner N Shashi Kumar.

The incident came to light after some students complained of stomachache, nausea, and diarrhea since Monday morning. A panic alarm was raised after parents alleged that the college authorities failed to inform them about the developments and that they were not given a status update on students either.

Relatives of the students had gathered in large numbers outside the hospitals where they had been admitted.

Prima facie, it is suspected that water contamination could have led to food poisoning. However, the police said that some students reported they took ill after consuming food from the hostel mess. Though the students complained of severe distress at 2am, parents and relatives alleged that they were brought to the hospital only after 9pm, a delay which has pushed some students to be in a worrisome state of health.

While 52 students were admitted to AJ Hospital, 42 were to Fr Muller Hospital, 18 to KMC, 14 to Unity Hospital, eight to City hospital and three students were admitted to Mangala Hospital.

“We are yet to get details on the health conditions of the students. I visited two hospitals and students looked tired due to their sickness. Though the incident had occurred in the wee hours, the police came to know of the incident late in the evening,” the police commissioner said.

Source: TOI 

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