At least five children have died in Salumbar district of Rajasthan in the past few days in what officials suspect is a case of viral encephalitis, prompting the health department and district administration to launch an intensive survey in the affected villages. The children who died of the illness were between the age group of one to four years.
The deaths were reported from Ghata and Lalpura villages in Lasadiya block, and officials said the children had similar symptoms before their condition worsened.
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District Collector Muhammad Junaid said the children showed signs such as vomiting, unconsciousness and altered sensorium. He said these symptoms point to a form of encephalitis, and doctors from Udaipur Medical College believe it could be a suspected case of viral encephalitis.
Encephalitis is a serious condition in which the brain becomes inflamed, usually due to a viral infection. It mainly affects children and can spread through mosquitoes, ticks or other infections. Early symptoms often include fever, headache, vomiting and weakness.
Officials also said one possibility being examined is whether the illness was linked to Chandipura virus, but the final confirmation is still awaited from the National Institute of Virology in Pune, where samples have been sent.
Family members said the children first developed fever and vomiting, after which they were taken to nearby health centres and then referred to larger hospitals in Dhariyawad, Pratapgarh and Udaipur. In several cases, the children died while being shifted for treatment.
Officials said the deaths have caused fear in the area, especially because the villages are far from urban medical centres. They also noted that some families first went to unauthorised local practitioners, which may have delayed proper treatment.
To prevent more deaths and check the spread of any illness, the district administration has carried out surveys in the villages over the past three days.
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Teams have surveyed 528 of the 561 families in Ghata Gram Panchayat so far, and samples have been collected and sent for testing. Anti-larval work has also been carried out in several places.
Across the wider Udaipur division, the health department said thousands of teams have already surveyed more than 1.2 lakh households, identified symptomatic patients and stepped up awareness and mosquito-control work.
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