In Rae Bareli hamlets, a string of deaths causes panic; Health Dept sends team

“With no postmortem examination being conducted, the health department team is relying on the medical records of those who died and the information provided by their families to ascertain the causes of death… In the preliminary inquiry, the team found that the deceased were battling various respiratory ailments, including septicemia, lung fibrosis, and chest infections,” a senior official said.

Of the reported deaths, five took place at Dadi hamlet, with two more in neighboring Purey Judawan. Both the hamlets with a population of 100 and 150, respectively, fall under the Mamuni gram sabha, approximately 30 kilometres from Rae Bareli district headquarters.

The first death was reported on March 8 with the passing of 65-year-old Jagdish Maurya, which was followed by the death of his relatives — Shiv Bahadur Maurya (60) on March 17, Thakurdeen Maurya (88) on March 26, Ram Narayan Maurya (65) on March 28, and Rameshwar Maurya (70) and March 30. Additionally, two deaths — Ram Kumar (80) on March 19 and Raj Lal Patel (62) on March 22 — were reported from the Purey Judawan hamlet.

The health department was informed about the string of “mysterious deaths” on March 30 that evoked memories of the Covid-19 pandemic among the villagers. “Notably, all the seven deceased lived separately,” said an official.

Satyapal Vishwakarma, a resident of Dadi, said the sudden spike in the deaths over such a short period has made villagers fearful of a resurgence of coronavirus in the village.
“A team of doctors and medical staff from the Community Health Center (CHC) in Salon visited the village on Sunday to meet with residents… On Monday, a large number of health officials and administration from the district headquarters Rae Bareli arrived in the two villages to gather information,” said Vishwakarma.

“The health team collected samples, including blood samples from the residents for examination. Additionally, the team provided medicines to villagers. Since the victims were facing health issues, we did not opt for postmortem examinations. We did not harbour any suspicion regarding the deaths as they were all elderly,” said Devesh Shukla, husband of Mamuni gram sabha pradhan Anita Shukla.

Chief Medical Officer (Rae Bareli) Dr Virendra Singh said: “All the victims were indeed battling various ailments… Nothing unusual has been found so far. We will, however, continue to investigate the matter and at the same time raise health and sanitation awareness among the residents.”

Additional Director of Health and Family Planning, Dr GP Gupta, also said there was no evidence of a mysterious disease behind the deaths. “However, a detailed inquiry is going on,” Gupta added.