With an FSL report on the death of 23 schoolchildren in Bihar confirming on Saturday that the mid-day meals served to the children had high quantities of the pesticide organo-phosphorus in them, the Nitish Kumar-led government and the Opposition engaged in a heightened sparring over the tragedy.
Bihar ADGP (headquarters) Ravinder Kumar said the Forensic Science Laboratory’s report on the July 16 deaths at a government primary school in Chhapra district mentioned the presence of Monocrotophos, an organo-phosphorous compound, in the samples of oil and food remains picked up from the school’s kitchen.
The ruling JD(U) used the FSL report to claim confirmation of its suspicion about a “possible political conspiracy” behind the poisoning, though an ongoing police investigation is still trying to ascertain how exactly the deadly chemicals, used as a pesticide for agricultural purposes, made their way into the children’s food.
“The peak area of the poisonous substance in the cooking oil was more than five times in comparison to the commercial preparation used as a control,” said Kumar, citing the report, which explains why the young children fell instantly sick after consuming the poisoned meals and died despite medical care, though initially inadequate and delayed. The ADGP said the FSL report was foolproof as it was tested by using database of the NIST library.