SRINAGAR: One more minor hailing from Badhaal village of Rajouri district died on Wednesday, taking the death toll to 15.
In a related development, police have constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the death of 15 people, including 12 children, belonging to three families in the remote Kotranka area of the district.
Official sources said that 10-year-old Zabina Kousar, the fifth child of Mohammad Aslam, succumbed in SMGS hospital at 9 pm. They said an 11-member SIT headed by the Superintendent of Police (Operations) Budhal, Wajahat Hussain, has been constituted, considering the sensitivity of the inquest proceedings initiated into the deaths.
Earlier in the day, Minister for Health and Medical Education, Social Welfare, and Education, Sakeena Itoo, said that investigations are underway to ascertain the actual cause behind these unfortunate deaths.
While speaking on the issue, Sakeena Itoo said that the entire team of the health department visited the affected village and checked more than three thousand people door-to-door. She stated that the teams collected samples of all kinds, including water, food, and other items, and sent them for testing.
The Minister said that all the tests have returned negative. “All the sample tests that have been taken—whether it is water, food grains, or the rest of the items they used, including biscuits—have all been found negative,” she said.
Even all the influenza tests have also returned negative, she added.
The Minister further noted that the health department had some samples tested outside the region through national institutes like ICMR, the National Institute of Virology, the National Centre for Disease Control, CSIR, DRDO, PGIMER Chandigarh, and others, with all reports found negative.
The Minister said that the deaths occurred among three families living at a distance of one and a half kilometres from each other. She highlighted that during these 40 days, the health department maintained all facilities in the affected area, including ambulances, medicines, and other essential drugs, to meet any exigency. “In 40 days, God forbid, if a COVID-related disease or another infectious disease had emerged, it would have spread. But no health-related issue has been found to date,” Sakeena said.
The Minister said that the matter is now under investigation, and the police department and district administration will further investigate the real issue.
Itoo also expressed her deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and assured the public that the government is treating this matter with the utmost urgency and seriousness. “The well-being of our citizens is our top priority, and we will leave no stone unturned in uncovering the root cause behind these tragic deaths,” the Minister maintained.
She appealed to the public to remain calm and extend full support to the district administration during the investigation to ascertain the actual cause of the deaths. (GNS)
