Bhubaneswar: The students of Mahanadi Girls’ Hostel at Ravenshaw University protested on Sunday after they allegedly found worms in food served at their mess, demanding immediate corrective measures to improve hygiene.The students alleged that they found worms in the food served to them in the morning and claimed it was not the first instance. They said they had repeatedly raised concerns with the university authorities, but alleged that no effective action had been taken..Following the complaints, chief warden of hostels, Purnendu Padhi, convened an emergency meeting with the wardens, students and caterers. University officials also inspected the cooking area to assess its sanitation and check the quality of food materials being used.“There is a private agency in charge of preparing the food. It has deployed cooks at the hostel. We have received the students’ complaint and are investigating the allegations,” said Padhi, who also met the hostel manager.Protesting against the quality of the food and alleged unhygienic conditions in the mess, the students sat on a dharna outside the hostel. They also shared photographs and videos of the food with the authorities.The students later submitted a written complaint to the chief warden, listing a series of measures they wanted the university to take. Their demands included regular cleaning of the mess and its equipment, inspection of food items, protective gear for cooks and improvement of drainage facilities.The students also urged the university to constitute a hostel committee to monitor food preparation and quality at the hostels and ensure that complaints relating to meals were addressed promptly.The university had faced food-related health concerns earlier too, with students from the East, New PG and Dharmapada hostels reportedly requiring hospitalisation after suspected food poisoning, attributed to stale food and concerns over water purifiers.