‘People fear eating, drinking and going outside’: anxiety stalks Indian village after mystery illness kills 17 people | Global development

M.The daughter came to me, while she was dragging my shirt, and she asked, “Baba, if we drank water, will we die too?” What can I tell her? “He shakes the voice of Talib Hussein as he describes an effect 17 deaths not explained in his villageIncluding 13 children, within weeks.

“I have lived here for more than 50 years, but I have never seen anything like that. In the past two months, I have seen 17 funerals. It is more than we can understand. People fear eating, drinking and even going out.

The sudden loss of 17 in the village of Badhal in the Jamu and Kashmir area in the Rajuri area, has left its 3,000 people who rejoice in sadness and fear for their lives. The Nightmare started on December 7, 2024, when Vasal Hussein, his wife and their four children were ill after a wedding.

The family has developed severe pain of the abdomen, vomiting and drowsiness. Within a few days, everything died regardless of Vasal’s wife. Initially, there was doubts that the reason was food poisoning from something they ate at the wedding, but on the day Ibn Vasal, five -year -old, died, she hit the tragedy of another family, who did not attend the celebration.

“My children only went to school,” says Mohamed Raq, who is the father of seven seven. “Two of them fell ill with fever. I gave them the medicine, and it seems better that night. But one of my children died at home. The other two were transferred to the hospital, but one of them died on the way to Jamo, and the others died six days later in Shandigar.”

Destruction of accompanying doubled when his wife, who was interested in children, also illuminated. Although she knows that she lost three children, doctors did not take her condition seriously. He could save her, but I lost it. “

He and his remaining children were accompanied by 200 people who were identified as in contact with the affected families, and they were transferred to two quarantine centers in the town of Rajuri, 37 miles (60 km) from Badhal, but he feared his remaining family. “What if something happens to them? Or for me? Who will take care of my family? This disease destroys life.

A month after the losses of the two families, the son -in -law, I am still, Muhammad Aslam, He lost six of his children To similar symptoms for a week. His uncle and his uncle surrendered to the disease during the same week. Aslam, Yasmine Koseer, died on January 19 – the last death registered in the village. He also converted to Islam in the quarantine in Rajuri.

Rashid Khan says his world was broken because of the tragedy that struck his neighbor. “I have seen Muhammad [Aslam] “He loses six of his children, one by one,” says Khan. “We don’t know what is happening. There must be an appropriate investigation to reveal the truth.”

More than 100 possible test sources failed, including food and water as well as blood samples, in identifying any viral or bacterial infection.

However, the tests revealed the effects of pesticides and pesticides in the only water source in the village, a Poly (Traditional water tank), which prompted the authorities to declare the containment area on January 18, prepare road checkpoints inside and outside the village, and limit people to their homes. Public and private gatherings were also banned, and food and water bottled are provided in bottles by the authorities.

This week, Dr. Amargate Singhia, Director of the Government Medicine College (GMC), said that poisoning by phosphorous membership, which is in blood samples taken from the deceased, would have been the cause of the “17 mystery” deaths. Hatia said Atropine injection I was given to patients admitted to the hospital, with positive results. Atropine is commonly used to treat organic phosphorus, including pesticides.

“We have not received official reports from major laboratories yet, but we used an approach to trial and the mistake that has succeeded well,” Batia said at a press conference on January 27. “We have managed the atropine for patients for other purposes, to increase the heart rate, and they survived and recovering well.” However, he warned that extracting conclusions at this stage would be premature until official reports are received. Eleven people remain in the hospital.

More than 200 samples of water, food and materials such as kitchen appliances have been sent to laboratories including the Indian Council for Medical Research, the Defense Research and Development Organization, the Scientific and Industrial Research Council for chemical pollution test, but the results are suspended.

Meanwhile, people in the village and beyond them feel helpless. Sira Begum, a mother of three children, transferred her family to Rajuri for safety, the community’s concern was awaiting the results. “Every time my children cough or complain about feeling tired, my heart stops. We are afraid to drink water from our homes. How can we protect our families when we do not even know what causes these deaths? We cannot sleep at night, and we always fear that something will happen to our loved ones We want answers, but no one seems to know anything. ”

Criticism of some villagers Response. “The division of the village into areas and restriction of the movement may help in the investigation, but it makes life unbearable for us,” says Mohamed Latif. “We are already struggling, and now we feel as if we are prisoners in our homes. We have to feed our animals, and while government teams help, we know better how to take care of them.”

They all want answers. “We just want this nightmare to end,” says Ghulam Khan. “We want our children to grow up in a safe and quiet village, and not a place where it looks every day as if it is the end. We need something to help us understand what is happening. This place was full of joy, but it is now full of sadness. We just want to find peace again.”

“We do not know how to protect ourselves,” he added. “It is not just a fear of death, but for fear of the unknown, and this is what makes it very terrifying.”