Toll of mysterious deaths in Jammu reaches 16

 

 

 

A MYSTERIOUS illness that has taken 16 lives in a small village here has confounded authorities, which remain clueless about the cause of the deaths even two months after the first casualty. Jatti Begum, 60, who perished from unknown causes on Friday is the latest casualty in the series. Another girl still battles for her life. The victims belong to Badhaal village in the Kotranka sub-division of Rajouri district, where 16 members of three families have died since December last year – seven of them since Sunday.

 

Authorities have sealed three houses belonging to the affected families and shifted 21 their close relatives to Government accommodation to be kept under strict monitoring. A team led by Additional Deputy Commissioner Dil Mir carried out the operation, with security personnel deployed at the sites, officials said. Meanwhile, an 11-member SIT, headed by Budhal Superintendent of Police (Operations) Wajahat Hussain, has been formed to investigate the deaths. Jatti Begum’s husband, Mohd Yousuf died three days ago in a hospital.