
Indian authorities are carrying out investigations to understand if organochlorine, which is used as pesticides aw well as mixed with mosquito control, has caused the death of one person and hospitalisation of around 400 people in Eluru of Andhra Pradesh over the past few days, Reuters reported.
The illness whose cause remains unknown has till now infected more than 300 children. The major symptoms of the infected ones include dizziness, fainting spells, headache and vomiting. They all were tested for COVID-19 but results turned out negative.
Federal lawmaker GVL Narasimha Rao, who hails from Andhra Pradesh took to Twitter to announce that he had spoken with government’s medical experts and that the “most likely cause is poisonous organochlorine substances”.
“It is one of the possibilities,” Geeta Prasadini, a public health director in Andhra Pradesh state said, and added that they were awaiting test reports to become certain of the cause.
She said that no new serious cases have surfaced in the past 24 hours. A 45-year-old man had succumbed to the unknown disease over the weekend.
Organochlorines are banned or restricted in several countries after researchers have found its link to cancer and other potential health risks. However, some of the pollutants found existing in the environment for years and build up over the years in animals and human bodies.