UP: 3 kids of Pilibhit family die in 3 days due to ‘mystery fever’

BAREILLY: Weeks after viral fever resulted in deaths of several children in Uttar Pradesh's Firozabad district, panic gripped a village in Pilibhit as three kids, aged 3, 4 and 5, of a farmer's family died due to a “mysterious fever” within a span of 72 hours.
The villagers of Baraatbhoj are in mourning since Thursday evening when Veerpal's younger son, Naresh (3) died of fever. His nephew Govind (4) fell ill, too, and was taken to a private hospital in Bareilly where he died during treatment the next day.
On Saturday evening, villagers were in for more shock when Veerpal’s daughter Laxmi (5) suddenly suffered a seizure after drinking milk and died within a few minutes.
After the death of the third child in three days, a team of health officials sent Laxmi's body for autopsy. The other two children’s bodies had been cremated soon after death.
Speaking to TOI, Pilibhit's chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Seema Agarwal said, “Till now, 151 confirmed cases of dengue have been reported from Pilibhit with one death. Our team visited Baraatbhoj village in Jahanabad area where three children died in 72 hours and they medically examined the family. We also conducted tests of several residents, but no one was diagnosed with dengue or malaria. The autopsy report will make things clear.”
Notably, almost all the hospital beds in four districts of Bareilly division are occupied at the moment and most of the patients are suffering from vector-borne diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and malaria.
Bareilly's CMO Dr Balveer Singh said that 403 cases of dengue and 2,200 cases of malaria have been reported so far in Bareilly district. “Five people also died due to the diseases here. We are now conducting over 200 tests on a daily basis and advising people to maintain cleanliness. Most of the patients in Bareilly hospitals are being referred from neighbouring districts.”
Meanwhile, a 14-year-old boy from neighbouring Budaun district succumbed to dengue at a private hospital in Bareilly on Sunday. Firozabad district has been worst-hit by viral fever cases with an official death toll of 75, including 56 children, so far this year.