R. Kavyasri, who died shortly after consuming a packet of mango juice in Kanika Iluppai village, Tiruvannamalai district, on August 10, 2024
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Following the death of a five-year-old girl at Kanika Iluppai village near Cheyyar town in Tiruvannamalai district, Tamil Nadu, allegedly after she consumed mango juice from a local shop on August 10, 2024, health teams are conducting door-to-door inspections in the region to monitor any potential spread of ailments.
The girl, R. Kavyasri, consumed a ₹-10 packet of mango juice that her father, 41-year-old E. Rajkumar, a farmer, had bought her from the local shop after breakfast on August 10.
A few minutes later, the girl was reported to have experienced breathing difficulty, after which she was rushed to the Government District Headquarters Hospital in Kancheepuram for treatment. The doctors there referred her to the Government Medical College Hospital in Chengalpet, where she subsequently died.
A case has been registered by the Dusi police and her body has been sent for postmortem examination. “We are awaiting the postmortem report to ascertain the cause of her death. We have also intensified food safety checks in the district,” District Collector D. Bhaskara Pandian said.
Officials of the Directorate of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, meanwhile, formed health teams to conduct door-to-door checks in the village on Tuesday. Each team comprises doctors, a Village Health Nurse (VHN), and health workers. Water samples from the main water pipelines and overhead tanks in the village have also been taken to check for contaminants.
“We’re conducting a health check-up for residents in the village. So far, cases of vomiting, fever, and diarrhoea have not been reported here. However, we are monitoring the situation,” K. Satish, Deputy Director of Health Services in Cheyyar, told The Hindu.
The District Food Safety Officer, A. Ramakrishnan, said the samples of the juice and the entire consignment from the local shop have been collected for testing. The food safety officers in the district are also coordinating with their counterparts in Namakkal district, where the manufacturer of the juice is located. Samples from the company’s godown in Namakkal have been taken for testing, officials said.
