As many as 137 students of a private nursing and paramedical college in Mangaluru’s Shakthinagar area were down with food poisoning after a meal at their hostel mess on Monday and had to be admitted to various hospitals in the city. The condition of some of them is reported to be serious.

“We came to know that since 2 am about 137 students complained of food poisoning, stomach ache, loose motions, vomiting and have been admitted to hospitals in the city,” Mangaluru Police Commissioner N Shashi Kumar said Kumar said. The authorities are trying to find the exact cause of food poisoning.

While 52 students were admitted to AJ Hospital, 42 of them went to Fr Muller Hospital, 18 to KMC, 14 were at Unity Hospital, eight at City Hospital and three at Mangala Hospital.