TIRUPATTUR: A one-and-a-half-year-old boy from Oosi Thopu village, Perumalpet, in Vaniyambadi died in the early hours of Thursday, with his family alleging that it was due to a vaccine administered to him at an Anganwadi in Indira Nagar on Wednesday.
The deceased, V Bhoomis, was the only son of J Vignesh (25), a van driver, and V Kirthika (21), a homemaker.
Speaking to TNIE, T Boopalan, Vignesh’s cousin, said the vaccine was administered at 11 am on Wednesday. “The child was fine until 4 pm. After that, he developed a fever. When we checked with the nurse, she gave us a tablet and tonic, and asked us to give it once every six hours. She also said fever is common after vaccination. The child slept at around 2 am and at 4 am he was lying breathless. When we rushed him to Vaniyambadi Government Hospital, we were told he was brought dead,” he said.
Health department officials said the parents initially refused a post-mortem. The relatives later staged a protest at Vellore Adukkamparai Government Hospital, where the post-mortem was conducted, and also blocked the Alangayam–Vaniyambadi Road.
A senior health department official told TNIE that the vaccines administered — Measles Rubella (MR), DPT Booster and Oral Polio — were the routine doses given to children of that age. “The same vaccines were given to five more children at the Anganwadi that day, and no adverse reactions were reported. This appears to be a sporadic case. The exact cause of death will be known only after the post-mortem report,” the official said.
The Chief Medical Officer of Vaniyambadi Government Hospital said he has initiated an enquiry and would be able to share details once it is completed. Meanwhile, Vaniyambadi Taluk Police have registered a case under Section 194 of the BNSS (unnatural death).