JAMMU, JANUARY 16: Jammu and Kashmir government is closely monitoring the situation in village Budhal, Rajouri, where an unexplained illness has claimed 14 lives. One child admitted to SMGS hospital is critical.
Investigations and samples empirically indicate that the incidents are not due to a communicable disease of bacterial or viral origin and that there is no public health angle. Pertinently all samples have tested negative for any viral or bacteriological etiology. The tests were conducted on different samples in some of the most reputed labs in the country. These include the National Institute of Virology Pune, the National Centre for Disease Control New Delhi, the National Institute of Toxicology and Research Lucknow, Defence Research Development Establishment Gwalior, the Microbiology Department of PGIMER Chandigarh besides the ICMR-Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory, GMC Jammu.
The incident came to notice on December 7, 2024, when a family of seven got ill after a community meal, resulting in five fatalities. On December 12, 2024, a family of nine was affected, claiming three lives. The third incident occurred on January 12, 2025, involving a family of ten who fell ill after consuming another community meal, with six children requiring hospitalization.
Responding promptly, the Govt took several steps to find the root cause of the unusual illness.
The Minister for Health and Medical Education, Ms. Sakina Itoo, visited the spot along with other cabinet colleagues, besides chairing several meetings with the Health and Medical Education Department, District Administration, and other related departments to find the cause of the illness and provide necessary healthcare facilities to the affected.
Chief Secretary J&K, Sh. Atal Dulloo, also chaired a series of meetings with health authorities, administration, technical experts from across the country, and police to ensure thorough fact-finding and provide the best healthcare facilities to the affected.
The Department of Health and Medical Education has been providing the best possible treatment and management to the patients besides reviewing the situation daily. Experts from some of the most reputed institutions in the country have been arranged to manage the situation and understand the causative factors of the deaths.
Secretary Department of Health Research, MOHFW, and DG ICMR Govt of India Dr. Rajeev Bahl held a video conference to discuss strategies and steps to rule out any epidemic.
The Government took several steps immediately after the first incident on December 7, including deputing a medical team along with the food safety department to collect food and water samples, organizing medical camps, establishing mobile medical units, door-to-door screening, and deploying rapid action teams.
A team of state rapid response experts, including epidemiologists, microbiologists, and others from DHS Jammu, GMC Jammu, and Rajouri, visited the area to conduct detailed screening and collect contact tracing samples. Experts from NCDC, NIV Pune, and PGI Chandigarh also visited the area to assist in containing the situation.
Clinical reports, lab investigations, and environmental samples indicate that the incidents are not due to a communicable disease.
The toxicological analysis conducted by CSIR-IITR has detected toxins in multiple biological specimens.
Meanwhile, Rajouri police have formed a SIT to investigate the deaths. Efforts are on by the J&K police to investigate the incident.
The government is committed to safeguarding the lives of people and is taking all necessary steps in the matter.