Chhindwara, Oct 1 Madhya Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Rajendra Shukla on Wednesday denied contamination of cough syrup in the mysterious deaths of six children in the state’s Chhindwara district, saying that preliminary investigation has not confirmed any contamination.
He further claimed that the state Health Department is handling the situation very seriously and that the situation is under control.
“Samples of medicines given to the children have been sent to a laboratory in Nagpur. Preliminary investigation found no contamination in the syrup. Final report is likely to come by Wednesday evening,” said Shukla, who is also heading the state's Health and Family Welfare Department.
The Deputy Chief Minister also claimed that he has spoken to the Health commissioner, and a two-member team from the Health Department has also been sent to Chhindwara to conduct a detailed inquiry into the matter.
“The officials are interviewing families, collecting medicine samples, and conducting door-to-door surveys to identify other affected children,” he said.
Earlier, children suffering from a routine wave of cough and a seasonal fever were admitted to a hospital, where they reportedly died of kidney failure. However, it was suspected that the deaths occurred due to contaminated cough syrup laced with toxic diethylene glycol as the cause of the deaths.
Reportedly, six children under the age of five had first complained of a cold and mild fever. Local doctors prescribed routine medication, including cough syrups, after which the children seemed to recover.
But within days, the symptoms returned, followed by a sudden and alarming decrease in urine output. The condition quickly worsened into kidney infections.
Children were admitted to Chhindwara District Hospital. When their conditions worsened, they were rushed to Nagpur (Maharashtra) for advanced treatment. Three children died there, while the other three died last week in Chhindwara.
Meanwhile, Chhindwara Collector Sheelendra Singh has ordered a ban on the sale of the two syrups across the district and issued an urgent advisory to doctors, pharmacies, and parents.
Singh further stated that complications have emerged because sudden kidney failure in so many children points to something far more dangerous. He also informed that the ICMR team has already sent blood and medicine samples to the Virology Institute in Pune for further analysis.
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