Free midday meal (representational picture)
(representational picture)Reuters

About 30 children were taken ill after having free mid-day meals at school in Bemetra district in Chhatisgarh on Saturday.

"Thirty students of a Primary school at Maugaon village complained of stomach pain and vomiting after eating the mid-day meal, following which 25 of them were rushed to Bemetara district hospital," Bemetara Collector Basavaraju S told PTI.

Among the 30 students, 25 are out of danger and the rest were sent home after a preliminary medical treatment at the Maugaon village, the collector added.

After the unfortunate incident, the Block Education Officer and Tehsildar were sent to the village to launch a probe. The Sub-Divisional Magistrate was also asked to conduct an enquiry.

The cause of illness in the students is not yet known but the collector ascertained that stringent action will be taken against the guilty.

The incident happened just four days after dozens of students died after consuming mid-day meals at a school in Chhapra, Bihar. The forensic report on Saturday confirmed that the deaths occurred due to presence of pesticide in the cooking oil used to prepare the meals.

No arrests have been made in the Bihar mid-day meal tragedy yet. The probe set up by the Bihar government blamed the school headmistress, Meena Devi, for mismanaging the school affairs. The Bihar police filed an FIR against the principal, who is absconding along with her husband.

The Human Resource Development ministry has set up a new committee to assess the mid-day meal scheme.