Mysterious illness claims 16th victim; Omar directs Health, Police Departments to expedite investigations
Rajouri, Jan 17: Another elderly woman died of unexplained disease late Thursday evening, thus taking the number of mysterious deaths in Badhaal village of Budhal in Rajouri district to 16, spreading panic among residents.
Deceased has been identified as Jatti Begum, 60, wife of Muhammad Yousuf, resident of Badhaal village. Woman, who had already lost her husband and five grandchildren, developed some symptoms in her house on Thursday afternoon after which she was shifted to hospital where she died.
Officials said that she was having some respiratory issues earlier. “But she developed symptoms similar to those of earlier victims of this mysterious disease, on Thursday afternoon while she was in her house. A team of doctors shifted her to sub district hospital Kandi. She was later taken to GMC Associated Hospital, Rajouri where she died,” officials said.
Jatti Begum had already lost her husband Muhammad Yousuf (62) who died on Tuesday. Mysterious disease has also claimed her five grandchildren – the children of her nephew, since Sunday.
With Jatti Begum’s death, the toll in three incidents related to the same mysterious death has risen to sixteen. Victims also include twelve children, belonging to three families. Two of the victim families are closely related to each other while one is distantly related.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah Friday directed the Health and Police departments to expedite their investigations in case of mysterious deaths in Budhal village of Rajouri district, keeping in view the urgency of the situation.
Sharing his concern over unexplained nature of deaths, the Chief Minister reiterated the commitment of the government to identify the root cause at the earliest. To achieve this objective, he instructed all concerned departments to collaborate with unflinching determination to resolve this disturbing issue.
Directions were issued by the Chief Minister while chairing a high-level meeting to discuss the alarming situation in Budhal village of Rajouri district, where mysterious deaths have claimed 16 lives, with one more victim succumbing to an unexplained illness.
“The unexplained nature of these deaths is deeply concerning and the government is committed to ensuring that the root cause is identified at the earliest. I urge all departments to collaborate and leave no stone unturned in resolving this issue,” CM Omar stated.
The meeting was attended by Minister of Health and Medical Education, Sakeena Itoo; Advisor to the Chief Minister, Nasir Aslam Wani; Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo; Additional Chief Secretary to the CM, Dheeraj Gupta; ADGP Jammu, Anand Jain; Divisional Commissioner Jammu Ramesh Kumar; Secretary Health and Medical Education (H&ME), Dr Syed Abid Rasheed Shah, and other senior medical and police officers.
Expressing his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families, the Chief Minister reassured the public that the administration was treating the situation with the highest priority. “The health and safety of our citizens remain our top priority. The government is fully committed to resolving this crisis and ensuring justice for the affected families,” he added.
Earlier, Secretary Health and Medical Education, briefed the Chief Minister on the steps taken so far. He reported that health department teams had conducted door-to-door surveys of over 3,000 residents in the affected area, collecting and testing samples of water, food, and other materials.
He informed that all test results, including those for influenza and other possible contaminants, were negative. The meeting was informed that additional testing was carried out by premier national institutes, including ICMR, National Institute of Virology, National Centre for Disease Control, CSIR, DRDO, and PGIMER Chandigarh, but no definite cause for the deaths was identified.
Police officials informed the meeting that investigations were underway to determine the root cause of the fatalities, which were limited to three families residing within 1.5 kilometers of each other. It was also emphasised during the meeting that the health department maintained an active presence in the area over the past 40 days, providing ambulances, medicines, and essential facilities to address any emergencies.
