The Telangana Human Rights Commission has sought a detailed report from the Wanaparthy District Collector after taking suo motu cognizance of a report about food-related illness among girl students at a government hostel in Pebbair. The students were reportedly affected after eating chicken for dinner at the Government Women’s Polytechnic College hostel on October 7.
The Commission, headed by chairperson Dr Justice Shameem Akther, acted on a news report published in a vernacular newspaper. Its intervention places the incident under formal scrutiny, with the panel seeking information on what happened at the hostel, the condition of the affected students and the medical treatment provided to them.
The report cited by the Commission alleged that the hostel warden and her husband attempted to conceal the circumstances of the incident by attributing the students’ illness to viral fever. The allegation has not been independently established in the supplied report, but it forms part of the concerns that prompted the human rights panel to seek an official account from the district administration.
The Commission’s action focuses on both the reported illness and the institutional response at the government-run hostel. Such hostels place responsibility for food arrangements, student welfare and emergency response within an administrative chain involving the institution and district authorities. The report sought by the Commission is expected to clarify the circumstances surrounding the meal, the number and condition of students affected, and the care they received.
The incident also brings food safety and health protection into focus in residential educational institutions, where students depend on the administration for daily meals and immediate assistance during medical emergencies. However, the material supplied does not establish the cause of the students’ illness, the precise number of affected students, whether food samples were collected or whether any medical or administrative action had already been taken.
The Commission has posted the matter for November 6, 2026, when the Wanaparthy District Collector is expected to submit the requested report. The next formal development will depend on the findings and details provided by the district administration to the human rights panel.
