Cuttack: The toll in mango kernel incident in Odisha’s Kandhamal rose to three as another woman who was undergoing treatment at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack died on Monday.
Sources said the poisonous mango kernel gruel claimed the third life as Jita Majhi, who was undergoing treatment at SCB Medical College & Hospital, passed away in the afternoon.
She was undergoing hemo dialysis with ventilator support at the Medicine ICU of the premier hospital.
It may be noted that two women – Ramita Patmajhi and Runu Majhi – died and six others were taken ill after allegedly consuming gruel made of mango kernel at Mandipanka village in the Daringbadi block of Kandhamal on October 30.
Two among the six were shifted to SCB in Cuttack late on October 2 evening as their condition deteriorated.
As the incident triggered statewide uproar, opposition parties, including BJD, Congress and CPM, claimed that the deaths resulted as the villagers were forced to consume mango kernel gruel due to delay in distribution of rice under the Food Security Act.
In the wake of opposition attack, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi had ordered a thorough probe by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) into the tragedy.
Accordingly, RDC (South) Roopa Roshan Sahoo along with collector Amrit Ruturaj conducted a probe into the incident. She visited Mandipanka village and interacted with the families of the two who died and those undergoing treatment.
Notably, Health department officials had earlier stated that faecal contamination was found in the food and water samples sent for test following the mango kernel incident in Kandhamal.
“The Hydrogen Sulphide and OT test was found positive for the water sample. Faecal contamination was found,” they quoted the report submitted to the commissioner of food safety as saying.
The victims consumed fermented rice and mango kernel before the incident which might have been stored/handled improperly or contaminated and could be a possible cause. They complained of nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and loose motion.
The Food Safety Officer (FSO) had collected mango kernel power (moist) and it was not fit for consumption due to foul smell, sources said.