As many as 47 students of the Sekolah Menengah Agama Hidayah Islamiah here suffered stomach pains, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea after they were suspected of food poisoning today.

Director of the Kedah Health Department Datuk Dr Norhizan Ismail said of the total, 15 were boys and 32 girls ranging from Form One to Form Six students in the school, with the first case occurring at about 11pm yesterday.

"The Kubang Pasu District Health Office received a notification of the food poisoning cases at the Sekolah Menengah Agama Hidayah Islamiah, Kubang Pasu at noon today.

"The students were suspected to have eaten beef curry which is believed to have been improperly cooked at dinner last night (Jan 15), causing them to suffer symptoms of stomach pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea," he said in a statement here today.

Following the incident, five students were treated at the Emergency Unit of the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Setar, while the rest of the students were treated at the school by medical teams from the Jitra Hospital and Air Hitam Health Clinic.

"All the students were treated as out-patients. Nobody was warded," he said.

Dr Norhizan said checks on the school's canteen found that the premises were clean, with a current rating of 93.1 percent.

"Measures that we have taken include health education for the teachers and students of the school, based on the principles of sight, smell and taste.

"At the same time, the canteen school operator has been given a warning and pointers on food preparation methods especially on the handling of raw materials and the proper cooking processes. - BERNAMA