In Jammu’s Budhal, fear grips villagers in wake of 17 ‘mysterious deaths’ in 45 days
New Delhi: The remaining members of three families in Budhal tehsil in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district have been shifted to isolated shelters in the Kandi village itself. Their houses have been sealed and sanitised, and even the food given to them is being tested. These arrangements, according to a source in the Jammu administration, are part of measures to contain any possibility of further ‘mysterious’ deaths in Budhal.
Thirteen children are among the 17 members of three interrelated families who have died in Budhal in the last 45 days.
Viral and bacterial infections have been ruled out by way of medical procedures, with preliminary findings pointing to neurotoxins as the likely cause, said sources.
Victims complained of fever, sweating, vomiting, dehydration, abdominal pain, and episodic loss of consciousness prior to their deaths.
On Saturday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed an inter-ministerial team to visit the village to ascertain the cause of deaths. The team will comprise experts from the ministries of health, agriculture, chemicals and fertilisers, water resources.
More than 12,500 samples, including that of blood, plasma, food, water, and environmental specimens, have been tested by national health agencies probing the deaths, it is learnt. But the cause of these deaths has not been ascertained so far.
On Friday, an order was reportedly issued to ensure that no villager draws water from the spring (bawli) of Kandi village after samples collected from the spring “tested positive for some pesticides/insecticides”.
Meanwhile, J&K police have constituted an 11-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Budhal Superintendent of Police (Operations) Wajahat Hussain to look into the deaths. The team includes forensic experts, pathologists and health officials, among others.
J&K Health Minister Sakina Itoo assured that the government was doing everything possible to identify the cause of these deaths. “Despite repeated testing and surveillance, the exact toxin and its source remain unknown,” the minister told ThePrint.
ThePrint reached Director of Health Services, Jammu, via calls and messages for comment on the deaths in Budhal but had not received a response by the time of publication. This report will be updated if and when a response is received.
The deaths took place in Kandi village in Budhal tehsil, about 60 km from Rajouri district headquarters. Budhal has a population of a little over 3,000 and is predominantly inhabited by Scheduled Tribes (STs), who make up about 65.54 percent of the population.
Fear grips villagers in Budhal
The tragic chain of events first unfolded on 5 December 2024, when one Fazal Hussain, a resident of Budhal tehsil, and members of his family fell ill after a community meal during his eldest daughter’s wedding. The 40-year-old, who complained of abdominal pain, vomiting, and drowsiness, died on 7 December. Four more in the family, namely Rabia Kousar (14), Rukhhsar (11), Farman Kosser (5), and Rafter Ahmed (5), died within a week.
On 12 December, another three children, aged 8, 9 and 11, of one Mohd Rafiq’s family died.
A month later, on 12 January, another family of 10 fell ill after consuming food at another community gathering. Of these 10 members of one Mohd Aslam’s family, six died. The last to succumb was a minor, who passed away on 19 January—taking the toll to 17.
“Mohammad Aslam has lost almost everyone in his family … Everyone in the village is scared,” Nasir Ahmed, a local resident, told ThePrint.
“How can this be a virus when only members of three families are dying? If it was a disease, it would have spread to others in the village. We’re terrified. How do we even know if the food we eat might kill us? This needs to be solved as soon as possible,” he said.
J&K Health Minister Itoo had told the media in a press conference Friday that “testing of more than 3,500 residents and environmental samples has been carried out, but no signs of infection or disease have been found”.
The J&K government has, at the same time, dispatched multiple expert teams to the village including from the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education & Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh; the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR); and the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to the affected village.
“According to initial reports, there are indications of damage to the brain, which lead us to believe that the cause of death might be a neurotoxin. However, it is not known what toxin this is and what was the source [of it],” said a public health official from Jammu on condition of anonymity.
Since the casualties were confined to three interrelated families, there is also a suspicion about targeted poisoning. Close familial ties between the deceased and the recurring pattern of deaths following community meals have led investigators to consider food as a potential delivery mechanism, said a senior J&K police officer who didn’t wish to be named.
“We are leaving no stone unturned. Several people have been brought in for questioning, but no arrests have been made so far,” the senior police officer told ThePrint.
Budhal, meanwhile, remains gripped by fear as the deaths have disrupted daily life and heightened tensions among the close-knit community. Villagers are avoiding community gatherings and meals, and many have restricted themselves to food prepared at home.
“We are terrified because we don’t know what is causing these mysterious deaths,” Nasir Rather, a local resident, told ThePrint. “Every family here is living in fear. We urge the authorities to speed up the investigation and find the root cause before more lives are lost.”
In addition to the SIT and medical teams, the J&K government has sought help from national experts to expedite the investigation. On Saturday, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chaired a high-level meeting in Srinagar to discuss the situation in Budhal.
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