A dead lizard was found in a mid-day meal served in a government school in West Delhi’s Hari Nagar and raised alarm among parents and led to a police and education-led investigation. Sarvodaya Co-Educational School stopped the distribution of food as a precautionary step, teachers and staff said.
According to police officials, the contaminated meal was found during lunch distribution under the government's Mid-Day Meal Scheme. Four sealed boxes of rice and chickpeas were sent to the school earlier that morning by an NGO named Moonlight, which supplies meals under the scheme.
The problem was uncovered when a school helper noticed a dead lizard in one of the food containers as lunch was served. Students had already been served the food by the time the contamination was detected. School authorities immediately stopped the distribution to prevent more children from eating the food.
Luckily, no student or staff member got ill after the incident, officials said. There were no food poisoning or health issues reported after the contaminated meal turned out to be the case, they said.
The school administration informed the Delhi Education Department and local police in the aftermath. A team from the Hari Nagar Police Station attended the school and began an investigation.
Police have registered a case and are trying to determine how the dead lizard ended up inside the sealed food container. Investigators are expected to investigate the food preparation, packaging and transportation process to determine if there was negligence at any point.
The Mid-Day Meal Scheme is one of the country’s biggest school nutrition programmes, aimed at providing nutritious meals to children studying in government and government-aided schools. Contaminated food has repeatedly raised questions about the food safety standards and quality control in meal preparation and distribution.
Authorities will also check the kitchen facilities and operating practices of the NGO supplying the meals. If any lapses are found during the investigation, appropriate legal and administrative action may be initiated against those responsible.
The incident has once more highlighted the need for extremely strict hygiene procedures and inspections and quality checks to ensure health and safety in school meals. The investigation is currently underway, and officials are awaiting further findings.
