Malavalli food poisoning: Death toll reaches two after another student succumbs

Mysuru: One more student, who was critical after consuming food at an educational institution in Malavalli, and undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Mysuru, succumbed to his illness on Monday night.

With this, the number of deaths in the suspected food poisoning case in Malavalli taluk has increased to two.

Namibanthye (12), is the student, who succumbed to illness, on Monday.

A 13-year-old student, Kirshen Lyang (13), died due to illness, after consuming food supplied to the school by a local businessman, as part of Holi, on Sunday. Both the children are students of Gokula Vidyasamsthe in Malavalli, Mandya district.

More than 120 people fell ill after consuming food prepared at a local hotel, in Malavalli, including 40 students of Gokula Vidyasamsthe. This included 24 students from the Northeastern state.

Out of them, two have succumbed, and the remaining are being treated at Mandya Institute of Medical Sciences. Four of them are undergoing treatment at the Intensive Care Unit. All are said to be stable.

According to police sources, the authorities from Meghalaya are in contact with their counterparts in Mandya over the health condition of the students' undergoing treatment and are also in talks planning to shift the students to their respective states.

A team of police personnel, led by a Dy SP, has been constituted to probe the incident. Three people, who were arrested on Sunday, availed bail on Monday. SP Mallikarjuna Baladandi, who inspected the hotel where the food was prepared, has ordered closure of the hotel, from Monday onwards.

Gokula Vidyasamsthe at T Kagepura village in the taluk - whose students were served food sponsored by Malavalli-based businessman Pushpendra Kumar - is a recognised day school.

The management has permission for the school, but has been illegally running a residential institution, it is said. A notice has been served to the school seeking a detailed report.