Food for Thought
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: July 18 , 2013 -
The Food Security Ordinance, which has been pushed by the Congress-led UPA Government in a rather hasty manner but with eyes firmly fixed on the Lok Sabha elections due next year may have generated heated debate and discussion in the political circle at the moment, but the latest Mid-day Meal tragedy in a Government Primary School in Dahrmasati Gandawan village of Bihar’s Saran district should have given enough food for thought to all on the pressing need for an ordinance for ensuring Food Safety as well.
It is indeed sad that 22 innocent children, all under the age of 10, and their cook have died while many others are still struggling for their lives in hospitals after consuming contaminated food served in the school as Mid-Day Meal scheme.
This is not the first time that such a tragedy has struck in the implementation of the Mid-Day scheme.
Though touted as the one of the most ambitious schemes of the UPA Government to motivate the poor people to get education, implementation of the scheme has always been marred by lack of necessary infrastructures and deep-rooted corruption on one hand, and insincerity and willful negligence, on the other hand.
There have been numerous cases in the past where lizards, snakes, frogs and even rats have been found in the cooked food served to children in schools under the Mid-Day Meal scheme in different parts of the country.
In another word, the tragedy in the Bihar school was only waiting to happen, and it was just a matter of time.
So, a thorough investigation should be conducted to fix responsibility for the contaminated food that has landed on the plates of innocent children.
Although a final toxicology report is yet to come in, preliminary investigation is said to have suggested that the food had traces of organo-phosphate, which is usually used as an insecticide on rice and wheat crops, and this is a serious matter that should not be belittled.
However, what has come as a total disgust in the latest tragedy is the war of words and politicking that has broke out between the ruling Janta Dal (U) and the opposition parties, thereby overshadowing the real issue at hand.
While the ruling JD (U) Bihar Government has started seeing a political conspiracy behind the incident with its Education Minister PK Shabi going on record to say that the husband of the headmistress of the school is a member of a prominent political party and the materials for the Mid-Day Meal to the school were supplied by the husband, the opposition parties have lost no time in attacking the government and in calling a series of bandhs at the district and State level, thus, reducing an important issue like death of so many innocent children from contaminated food served to them in school into a political tamasha.
What could be more tragic than this for the fate of the poor children in the country?
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