A total of 53 pupils of the Qiangfawaidi Primary School have been confirmed to be sickened by food poisoning in Yangjiang City, south China's Guangdong Province,local hospital sources said Tuesday.

Some pupils of the school started to report symptoms of fainting and vomiting at about 1:00 p.m. Monday. By 5:30 p.m., 82 pupils were sent to the Yangjiang City People's Hospital and the Yangjiang City No. 3 Hospital for medical treatment.

An official with the city education bureau said 53 of the 82 pupils were diagnosed to have eaten contaminated food at the school's dining hall.

By press time, 10 have been discharged from hospital and remaining students stayed in hospital for further medical observation.

Parents of the pupils accused the school of buying contaminated cheap vegetables that resulted in the sickening accident.

The Qiangfawaidi Primary School was established especially for children of transient workers and has been operating without official permission from local education authorities.

The school was ordered to conduct check-up and rectification for sanitation reasons.

Local education authorities have urged the school to go through official procedures for school operation and local police is investigating the case of food poisoning.

Source: Xinhua