Pics by Rons Bantwal

Mumbai, Jun 25: Twenty-four children, including a nine-month-old baby, from the Asha Sadan Rescue Home at Umerkhadi were admitted to JJ Hospital, Byculla, on Wednesday night, following complaints of vomiting and upset stomachs.

They were discharged on Thursday afternoon.

Doctors at the hospital said that the children, aged between 0 and 6 years, suffered from mild food poisoning.

The children had taken ill two hours after eating their dinner on Wednesday.

“They were served dal, rice and dudhi halwa for dinner. Some of the children started vomiting and had upset stomachs a couple of hours after dinner. We rushed them to the hospital as we need to be extra careful about their health during monsoon,” said an Asha Sadan official.

“We suspect that it was a staphylococcus bacterial infection, which isn’t a serious problem. The dudhi halwa, prepared on Monday and served to the children on Wednesday, could have been the cause as it’s made of milk. There was no case of salmonella poisoning,” said Dr T.P. Lahane, dean, JJ Hospital.

“All the children have recovered well and are eating regular meals,” he added.

V.B. Mukne, senior inspector of Dongri police station, said that the police were conducting enquiries and recording statements of the children as well as the superintendent and attendant of the shelter to find out who had donated the halwa to the home.

“We have sent the blood and stool samples of the children to the forensic laboratory and are waiting for the reports,” said Mukne.

“We will book the culprit under relevant sections if the reports confirm negligence,” he added.