Leaves of doctors, paramedics cancelled to deal with mysterious deaths in Rajouri

Rajouri/Jammu: Authorities have cancelled all leaves of doctors and paramedics in the wake of a medical alert following the deaths of 17 people from Badhaal village in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district due to a mysterious illness.

The number of people sent to quarantine has risen to 230.

Union minister Dr Jitendra Singh said the initial investigation conducted by the toxicology laboratory in Lucknow concluded that the cause was not any infection, virus or bacteria but a toxin.

Principal of Rajouri Government Medical College (GMC) Hospital, Dr Amarjeet Singh Bhatia, on Friday addressed a press conference in Rajouri and announced that all leaves of doctors and paramedic staff have been cancelled.

"The winter vacations have also been cancelled to deal with the medical alert situation after 17 people from three families died under mysterious conditions in the last one-and-a-half months," he said.

He further said the Jammu and Kashmir government has deputed 10 additional medical students to GMC Rajouri to aid the medical setup amid the ongoing health situation.

The health condition of three persons undergoing treatment at GMC Hospital in Jammu and PGI Chandigarh is being monitored, officials said.

Four people, including three sisters, were shifted to hospitals, with three airlifted to a hospital in Jammu on Wednesday.

More persons, including relatives who had come in contact with the victim families, were sent on Friday to quarantine as a precautionary measure.

As a precaution, more individuals, including close relatives of the deceased, have been relocated to the Nursing College quarantine centre in Rajouri, increasing the number to 230, the officials said.

Strict security has been put in place at the Nursing College quarantine centre in Rajouri, which has been heavily secured and fenced, they added.

Several people who came into contact with the affected families, from taking children to the hospital to burying them, have also been identified, they said.

The Union minister said a thorough investigation is underway. "The initial investigation conducted by our toxicology laboratory in Lucknow concluded that it was not due to any infection, virus or bacteria but rather a toxin," he said.

He added that the investigation into the nature of the toxin is going on. "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," he said.

The remote Badhaal village was declared a containment zone on Wednesday, with prohibitory orders imposed on all public and private gatherings in the wake of the deaths, the officials said.

Seventeen people, including 13 children, from the families of Mohammad Fazal, Mohammad Aslam and Mohammad Rafiq in Badhaal village died due to a mysterious illness over the past one-and-a-half months.

Both the central team and police are continuing their separate probes into the deaths, they said.

A central team continued its investigation on Friday into the cause of the deaths which occurred in three families.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was set up by the police after certain neurotoxins were found in the samples of the deceased, continued its probe into the criminal angle. They have questioned over 50 people in this case, the officials said.

Dr Bhatia revealed that the common factor among all 17 deaths is the involvement of the brain and damage to the nervous system.