After 17 ‘mystery deaths’ in J&K village, 9 admitted with similar symptoms now stable, say doctors

This comes at a time when district authorities have issued stringent health measures in the village amid the growing number of casualties due to the unidentified cause. The victims were all from three related families, and were mostly minors.

In a statement he issued Thursday, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said a toxicology report from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Lucknow has indicated the presence of a toxin in the bodies of the deceased.

“`Now the toxin is being tested,” he had said, adding that the “mystery” would soon be cleared.

This was the first time such a statement was conclusively made since the first death was reported on December 7, and indicated that authorities were closer to finding the cause of the illness.

Meanwhile, 100 more village residents were moved to the Rajouri hospital Friday for continuous health monitoring, bringing the number of such admissions to nearly 300, sources from the district administration  said. As the administration continues to isolate village residents to prevent any “further contagion”, hospital infrastructure too has been strengthened, with more doctors – including 10 more paediatricians and anaesthesiologists – being deployed there.

The administration continues with its protocol of having containment zones announced earlier this week, with more police and paramilitary deployment in the area to restrict movement. It also continues to distribute food and water around the village thrice a day – another practice it enforced earlier this week.

“To provide fodder to the livestock and cattle left behind by the villagers who have been isolated in hospitals, the administration has deployed staff from the Animal Husbandry Department,” a senior official in the district administration said.

Budhal MLA Javed Iqbal Choudhary has asked J&K’s Omar Abdullah government to declare a “medical emergency” in the village, and has also demanded an air ambulance to be made available to help move critical patients to health facilities in Chandigarh or Delhi.

Early December, seven members of a family reported symptoms of fever and vomiting after attending a function in the village. Since the first death on December 7, 17 more have died and scores more were taken ill, sending multiple agencies from Centre as well as the Union Territory scrambling to find the cause.

Last week, Union Home Minister Amit Shah set up an inter-ministerial team to investigate the deaths.