New Delhi, FEBRUARY 2: A five-member expert team from AIIMS Delhi, including toxicology specialists, has assessed 11 patients undergoing treatment for a mysterious illness that has claimed 17 lives in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district. The team also recorded their clinical history.
On Sunday, the experts will visit Badhaal village, where three families suffered casualties, to collect samples from sealed homes and surrounding areas.
“The samples will be tested to determine the cause of toxicity. The team will also interact with other villagers,” a source said.
Led by AIIMS Director Dr. M. Srinivas, the team includes Dr. A. Shariff (Clinical Toxicology), Dr. Shailendra Kumar (Anesthesia and Critical Care), Dr. Jamahed Nayer (Emergency Medicine), Dr. Jagdish Prasad Meena (Pediatrics), and Dr. Javed Qadri (Clinical Toxicology).
The AIIMS team arrived in Rajouri on Friday night, interacted with patients and their relatives at Government Medical College (GMC), and examined some of those under observation. Doctors at GMC Rajouri are treating patients with Atropine, an anti-poison drug.
A separate team from PGI Chandigarh is also investigating the cause of toxicity.
Meanwhile, no new cases have been reported in the past nine days from Badhaal village, where 17 people from three families died between December 7 and January 19.
To prevent further casualties, 87 families (364 individuals) have been relocated to isolation centers in Rajouri, while the remaining 3,700 residents in Badhaal are being monitored through 14 clusters managed by 182 officials.
All shops in the village have been sealed, and ration distribution is under strict supervision. Authorities have declared Badhaal a containment zone, imposing prohibitory orders on public and private gatherings.