KRISHNAGIRI: In the wake of two persons dying allegedly due to diarrhoea and other health complications in Denkanikottai town panchayat last week and four more diarrhoea cases subsequently reported in the region, the health department conducted a medical camp on Sunday. Water samples from the town and the residents’ stool samples have been sent to the laboratory.
On Friday night, the health department received information that three children aged 9-14 years and studying at a madrasa in Denkanikottai were receiving treatment at Government Krishnagiri Medical College Hospital for diarrhoea. Another student was admitted to Denkanikottai government hospital the next day with the same illness.
A team headed by Kelamangalam Block Medical Officer C Rajesh Kumar visited the madrasa on Saturday morning and made enquiries with the staff. They came to know that a 54-year-old man from Doddi area in the town panchayat, who was suffering from diarrhoea, died on Wednesday. “We were also told that a 65-year-old woman from the same area, who complained of diarrhoea and other health complications, died at Denkanikottai government hospital on Saturday morning,” health department sources told TNIE.
Suspicion was raised about water contamination at a private bottling plant in Denkanikottai, which supplied water to the madrasa and the two deceased. Upon inspection, the officials found reagents that had expired several years ago at the plant. Further, no chlorination procedure was done for the plant’s water source, the sources added. On Sunday, the health department disinfected the town panchayat streets and spread awareness among the residents about personal hygiene.
They also chlorinated an overhead water tank in Doddi. Stool samples from 10 residents and water samples from 12 places, including the overhead tank and several households, were collected and sent to the district public health laboratory in Krishnagiri. Pointing out that diarrhoea alone cannot be the reason for the two deaths, Deputy Director of Health Services G Ramesh Kumar said the elderly woman admitted to Denkanikottai government hospital died due to septic shock and renal failure.
“We are waiting for the test results of water and stool samples. Until then we can’t lay the entire blame on the private water bottling plant. Ideally, we should have collected food samples also from the region,” he said. Food Safety and Drug Administration Designated Officer Venkatesan said he was unaware of the matter and would send his officials to the madrasa and houses on Tuesday. Officials from the Krishnagiri district child protection unit also said they were not aware of the issue and would hold enquiries.