A 10-year-old girl died and 20 people fell ill after consuming contaminated water in the Gonal village of Kampli taluk in Karnataka's Ballari district, officials said on Monday. The deceased girl has been identified as Sukanya. According to authorities, the tragedy occurred after gutter water got mixed with drinking water. Most villagers, who are ill, are being treated at the premises of the government school.
The villagers after consuming the contaminated water started falling sick. They developed severe loose motion and vomiting symptoms and also complained of dehydration on Saturday evening. The girl, who was admitted to the hospital, was discharged by the hospital authorities on Saturday evening. However, the girl developed health complications and succumbed at her home on Sunday.
District Health Officer (DHO) Janardhan is stationed at the village and monitoring the situation. Many unwell villagers were being treated in their homes.
Janardhan stated that the health of the unwell villagers was stable and was being closely monitored. The authorities have arranged an ambulance at the village to shift a patient who turns critical. The doctors of nearby Primary Health Center and nurses have also been stationed in the village.
Janardhan said that 20 people have been admitted to the hospital with symptoms associated with water contamination, and the district administration will give compensation to the family of the girl who died.
According to reports, health officials have collected water samples and despatched them to various laboratories for testing.
The health officers are also making door to door visits to every home in the village. District administration has initiated an inquiry into the incident.
Meanwhile, according to reports, 25 students of Kittur Rani Chennamma Residential School in Hassan district fell ill after consuming dinner from their hostel in Alur taluk on Sunday. The students were shifted to Hassan Institute Of Medical Sciences (HIMS).
With IANS inputs