J&K Mysterious Deaths: The death toll due to a mysterious disease in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district has reached 17 and a high-level inter-ministerial team is probing the cause of the deaths. All 17 victims are from three families in the remote Badhaal village of the district.
Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo on Tuesday directed the health and the police departments to take stringent containment measures to ensure no further loss of lives.
The central team headed by a director-rank officer in the Ministry of Home Affairs was present in the village for nearly six hours in the village on Monday as part of the probe. The team returned to Badhaal village this morning from Rajouri and resumed their activities like collecting samples and interacting with surviving members of three families and the villagers.
Deaths Not Due To Communicable Disease
Investigations and samples empirically indicated that the incidents were not due to a communicable disease of bacterial or viral origin and that there is no public health angle, a Jammu and Kashmir government spokesperson said. A Special Investigation Team was set up after certain neurotoxins had been found in the samples of the deceased.
A spring in the village was also sealed after its water tested positive for some pesticides/insecticides.
What Are Neurotoxins?
Neurotoxins are compounds that are toxic, or potentially toxic, to the nervous system, as per Science Direct. The nervous system has unique physiologic characteristics and thus is especially susceptible to toxic injury. These are the effects of neurotoxins:
- Paralysis or weakness in the limbs
- Altered sensation, tingling, and numbness in the limbs
- Headache
- Vision loss
- Loss of memory and cognitive function
- Behavioral problems
- Depression
- Loss of circulation
