Authorities are investigating after 17 people died in a remote village in Jammu and Kashmir
A remote village in the Rajouri district of India’s Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) has been hit by a series of sudden deaths attributed to a mystery disease. The Ministry of Home Affairs has formed a special team to investigate the deaths in Badhal after the toll reached 17 on Sunday, India Today reported.
The illness, which first appeared in December, continues to pose a significant challenge to authorities. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah visited the village on Tuesday and assured locals that all their questions would be answered soon.
Initially, five unexplained deaths were reported in the village. One family has suffered the loss of eight members, including six children, local media reported. The latest victim, a girl named Yasmeen, died on Sunday evening after being placed on ventilator support at a state-run hospital in Jammu.
J&K police have launched a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the criminal conspiracy angle, questioning suspects and examining their mobile data. However, no breakthroughs have been reported thus far.
Read more
The nightmare returns? A deadly new bat-borne virus is spreading through Asia
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, addressing the media, said that central and state administrations are working to uncover the causes of the deaths. He highlighted the formation of the inter-ministerial team and the SIT, expressing confidence that the investigation would soon yield results.
Regional authorities have reportedly sealed a local water spring, known as ‘Bawli’, after samples tested positive for pesticides and insecticides. The additional deputy commissioner of the region has also issued an order blocking access of local residents to the spring. Experts from medical institutions, including the Indian Institute of Virology in Pune, PGI Chandigarh, and the All India Institute of Medical Studies (AIIMS) Delhi, have joined the investigation efforts and collected samples from the affected area.
Experts investigating the deaths have ruled out any viral, bacterial or microbial infections, according to Indian Express. However, they have also said that “certain neurotoxins” appear to have been found in the samples of at least 13 people who died.
READ MORE: Terrorists gun down construction workers in India’s Kashmir
Symptoms reported among the affected individuals include fever and excessive sweating. India witnessed similar such mysterious cases in 2020 after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. The city of Eluru in southern state of Andhra Pradesh was confronted with a mystery illness that hospitalized more than 550 people with symptoms including loss of consciousness, convulsions, seizures, and an unexplained giddiness. The outbreak was unrelated to Covid-19 as none of the patients tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, according to a report by The Scientist.
+ There are no comments
Add yours