HYDERABAD: Health Minister Cilarapu Damodar Raja Narasimha said that 92 psychiatric inmate patients fell ill at Institute of Mental Health (IMH), Erragadda on June 2, State Formation Day, after they were suspected to have consumed additional sweets served at the hospital on that occasion. "That could be the reason for the incident," he added.
A day after the alleged food poisoning incident came to light, Health Minister visited the hospital on Wednesday.
He said that out of the 92 patients, 18 were shifted to Osmania General Hospital (OGH) for treatment, while the remaining 74 are being treated by six teams of doctors, including those from Gandhi Hospital and OGH, at Erragadda hospital.
The minister mentioned that diet or water contamination could be the reason behind the incident and announced that the diet contractor had been terminated. He instructed the Director of Medical Health to investigate the matter.
Officials suspect that diet or water contamination might have caused the patients' ill health, with a possibility that the additional sweets served on State Formation Day could be the cause.
Meanwhile, an inmate named Karan (30) died on June 3. The minister added that a police complaint had been lodged and an investigation was underway. The post-mortem has been conducted, and the exact cause of death will be revealed once the reports are received.