Indore: 5 children dead, 38 hospitalised in suspected food poisoning in shelter home

Seven more children suffering from suspected food poisoning at a shelter home in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city have been admitted to a government hospital, an official said on Wednesday.

With this, the number of such children admitted to the hospital has risen to 38, he said.

As many as 204 children, including orphans and those suffering from mental ailments, had been housed at the Shri Yugpurush Dham Bal Ashram, located in Malharganj police station area here, an official earlier said.

Five children died there over the last three days while 38 others have so far been hospitalised, prompting the Madhya Pradesh government to order a high-level inquiry.

District Collector Ashish Singh said four children died on Monday and Tuesday due to infection caused by suspected food poisoning, while another child died on Sunday after suffering from seizures.

"Seven more children showed symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea late Tuesday night at Shri Yugpurush Dham shelter home and were admitted to the Government Chacha Nehru Children's Hospital," he said.

Out of the 38 children brought to the hospital, four were admitted in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) though their condition was improving, he said.

A team of the district administration will keep an eye on the health of all the children of the shelter home for next 48 hours, Singh said.

The source of suspected food poisoning will be known only after receiving probe report of the food and ration samples, he said.

A high-level committee of the administration is conducting a detailed probe into the shelter home over various aspects, he added.

(PTI)