54 patients treated so far: Health Deptt

As many as 54 people from the tribal hamlet Kotli near Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri suffering from water-borne gastrointestinal outbreak have been treated so far, while 16 of them have reported at GMC Associated Hospital Rajouri, where two patients are still under treatment while other 14 have been discharged, officials said.

- Sumit Bhargav

Kotli isa remote tribal hamlet in Bagla Panchayat of Rajouri district and is located near Line of Control (LoC) with people of area have no much access to government supply of water for drinking and their dependency for drinking water is upon natural sources like wells.

In last one and half weeks, dozens of people from this tribal hamlet have been reported with medical issues of gastroenteritis and Diarrhea and two patients are still under treatment in GMC Associated Hospital Rajouri. Besides, 38 patients with similar medical issues were treated at the site by team of doctors and medical experts that visited the affected hamlet. Some of the villagers treated at the site had to be given IV fluid while others got treated with oral medication.

The illness among the locals has now been confirmed to be a case of water source contamination after E-coli has been found in spring and water wells from where affected population was fetching drinking water.