Koderma: The upgraded middle school at Nawadih in Domchanch block, where a student suffered fatal food poisoning six days ago, reopened on Tuesday amid angry protests and following police intervention.
Manish Kumar, 10, a sixth grader, was among 70-odd students who took ill after a midday meal of aloo-chana with rice on August 28. He died on his way to a Ranchi hospital, around 165km away, on August 29. A probe has revealed that the chana served at the school was rotten.
When this reporter visited the school, 15km from the Koderma district headquarters, around 10.30am, he saw students loitering outside classrooms.
"We came to school at 8am, but some people asked us to leave," said Kiran Kumari, a Class VIII student. "Villagers asked us to vacate classes and then locked the rooms," added seventh grader Priti.
The state-run school has 207 students on its rolls, but only 76 turned up on Tuesday. On August 28, 150 had had their midday meal on the campus.
A group of 20 villagers, including the bereaved parents, who were protesting outside the school said they were pained by the "apathy" of the district administration.
"The parents were promised a compensation of Rs 1 lakh. They haven't received a penny yet. There is no guarantee that future midday meals will be safe for our children. Also, the authorities haven't taken anyone to task despite an FIR being lodged," said Draupadi Devi, a protester.
As many as 11 people, including para-teacher Anjani Kumar Ambast, school management samiti members Mahesh Kumar Mehta, regular teacher Kiran Kumari, cooks Manju Devi, Nilam Devi and Maheshwari Devi, were booked under IPC sections for laxity and carelessness.
Devanti Devi fumed that they would not allow the school to run until their grievances were addressed and their demands fulfilled.
Kumud Devi, the mukhiya of Nawadih panchayat, said she was holding a meeting with teachers and the newly formed school committee on how to ensure proper midday meal when some agitating parents evacuated classrooms.
The mukhiya decided to inform police. Koderma SDPO Om Prakashand Domchanch thana OC Vinod Kumar reached school around 11am. After a 35-minute dialogue with the parents, police managed to pacify the protesters and classes resumed.
The school, however, got over at 12.45pm, an hour and 15 minutes before schedule. "Things will be streamlined from Wednesday. Now on, midday meal will be served with utmost precaution," said a school employee.
