Initial Probe Suggests Deaths Not Caused by Infection but by Toxin
SRINAGAR: Indian authorities in Indian-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) have launched an investigation into a mysterious disease that has claimed the lives of 17 people, local media reports said on Saturday.
The deaths, including those of 13 children, occurred in the remote village of Badhaal in IIOJK’s Rajouri area since early December.
The village was declared a containment zone earlier this week with around 230 people quarantined, the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency reported.
All of the fatalities had damage to the brain and nervous system, said Amarjeet Singh Bhatia, head of Rajouri’s government medical college.
“The winter vacations have also been cancelled to address the medical alert situation,” Indian state media quoted Bhatia as saying.
The victims were members of three related families.
The federal government has launched an investigation, with Health Minister Jitendra Singh stating that an initial probe suggested the deaths were “not due to any infection, virus or bacteria but rather a toxin.”
“There is a long series of toxins being tested. I believe a solution will be found soon. Additionally, if there was any mischief or malicious activity, that is also being investigated,” Singh told PTI.
In a separate medical incident, authorities in the western city of Pune recorded at least 73 cases of a rare nerve disorder.
According to an official, those infected with Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) include 26 women, with 14 of the patients on ventilator support.
In GBS, a person’s immune system attacks the peripheral nerves, which can lead to muscle weakness, loss of sensation in the arms and legs, and difficulty swallowing and breathing.
