Bihar shelter home deaths: Adulterated food found , action taken against 13 officials

Patna: The Social Welfare Department of the Bihar government on Thursday suspended the officer-in-charge of the women's shelter home in Patna where three inmates had died and several others were taken ill after consuming contaminated food, a top official said.

Apart from the suspension of the officer-in-charge of the home, 12 other employees have been relieved from their duties due to negligence on their part and disciplinary action has been initiated.

Talking to PTI on Thursday, the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) of the Social Welfare Department, Harjot Kaur Bamhrah, said, “The action follows the report of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) which has flagged the food items not fit for human consumption." "Spices like turmeric and coriander used for preparation of food items were found to be adulterated and containing impurities,” Bamhrah said.

The FSSAI report on the food quality served to inmates at the shelter home arrived on Thursday evening.

“Lead chromate was found in turmeric and an oily unnatural colour was also found. The turmeric was found to be unsafe under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006,” she said.

The process of blacklisting the firm that supplied materials to the shelter home called 'Ashra Grih', where the incident took place, has been initiated and other actions, including registration of an FIR against the firm, is under process, she said.

The ACS along with other senior officials of the department on Thursday visited the Patna Medical College Hospital (PMCH) and inquired about the inmates who are still admitted there.

She met the ailing inmates also.

“Senior doctors of the PMCH briefed the ACS about the condition of the women/girls admitted there. Doctors said that these inmates would soon be discharged,” said another official of the department.

The ACS, who also visited Ashra Grih on Thursday, asked officials of the state health department to conduct a medical examination of all other inmates who are currently staying at the shelter home, the official said.

She has also written a letter to District Magistrates (DMs) across the state to conduct a comprehensive inspection of shelter homes operating in their respective districts and send reports to the department within a week, the official said.

Three inmates died and 12 others fell ill due to food poisoning at Ashra Grih, a state-run shelter home in Patna, for differently-abled women.

They fell ill after consuming breakfast on November 7.

A 24-year-old woman died on the same day at the Patna Medical College and Hospital, while a nine-year-old girl lost her life on November 10 and a 12-year-old girl died on Wednesday evening.