Tiny dead snake found in mid-day meal in Maharashtra; Congress leader demands probe

After reports emerged of a tiny dead snake found in a packet distributed under the mid-day meal scheme in western Maharashtra’s Sangli district, Congress leader and former State Minister Vishwajeet Kadam raised the issue in the Assembly during the ongoing monsoon session and demanded a detailed probe on July 4.

The parent of a child in an anganwadi in Krushinagar of Palus taluk in Sangli had taken the food packet home on Monday and found the snake upon opening it. A photo was sent to the authorities, leading to an inquiry, said Anandi Bhosale, a State Anganwadi Workers’ Union Vice-President.

Mr. Kadam, who represents the Palus-Kadegaon constituency, said, “We are playing with the lives of children and mothers. The government must take cognisance of such a dire situation and punish whoever is guilty.” He asked if the government had conducted inspections and quality checks on any of the storage units.

The mid-day meal scheme is for children aged six months to three years at the anganwadis. The food packets of dal khichadi are distributed to families on arrival at the anganwadi.

Mr. Kadam said, “Indo Allied Protein Foods has a contract to supply food grains across Maharashtra. Every two months the stock of food packets is delivered to various districts, and from there, it is sent to the respective schools.“

The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) seized the food stock of the anganwadi and collected samples for laboratory testing on Wednesday. 

Speaking to The Hindu, Women and Child Welfare Deputy Executive Officer Sandeep Yadav said, “The FDA visited Palus for investigation, and collected information from beneficiaries. The parents discarded the alleged dead snake, so the FDA collected the food sample from the packet for the test, we are waiting for the results.”

Meanwhile, State Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif informed the Lower House about starting a new State-run medical college on the premises of Gokuldas Tejpal (GT) Hospital in south Mumbai in the coming academic year.

“The medical college will initially launch with 50 students and slowly increase the intake,” he said. The proposal to start the new medical college on GT Hospital premises was made in 2012 with Cama and Albess Hospitals attached to it.