PATNA: At least 66 students of a private residential school at Baisi in Purnia district fell ill after having lunch at the school hostel on Sunday.Reports reaching the state capital said five students complained of headache and started vomiting at 7pm. Their parents reached the hospital on receiving information from the school administration.Baisi SDPO Sawan Kumar said he got a call in this regard from the Popular School administration around 7.30pm. “By midnight, the number of sick children increased to 66. They were shifted from the Baisi primary health centre (PHC) to the Purnia sadar hospital due to shortage of beds at the PHC,” the SDPO said and added all of them were out of danger now.Few of the students were even discharged from the hospital and sent back to their homes till the investigation is on, the SDPO said.Sources said police were told that the children were served veggies, dal and rice for lunch around 3pm and they started feeling uneasiness after few hours.Purnia SP Vishal Sharma told this reporter over the phone that a 10-year-old boarder was alleged to have mixed rodent poison into the veggies. “We are probing the matter to find out whether the boy did it deliberately or by mistake,” the SP said and and added the child helpline had been contacted to counsel the boy, if need be.The SP said the quantity of poison was apparently less, but all the 90 boarders were sent for medical check-up.In a similar incident in Lakhisarai’s Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, at least 115 students had to be hospitalized as they complained of uneasiness after dinner on July 12.

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