A total of 42 students at a middle school in northwest China's Gansu Province were knocked down in a food poisoning case that happened Tuesday noon.

They were rushed to hospital. By Wednesday morning, 36 students had been discharged from hospital. Six students, who are still in critical condition, remain in hospital for clinical observation and treatment.

The 42 students at the No. Six Middle School in Yongdeng County of Gansu Province had lunch at an unlicensed restaurant near the school during the noon break. Many showed the symptoms of nausea and diarrhoea during classes on the very afternoon. They were then sent to the Yongcheng Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Initial investigation showed the food poisoning was caused by half-cooked beans.

(Xinhua News Agency October 27, 2004)