3 of family die, 3 battling for life after consuming food laced with pesticide in Raichur village

RAICHUR: Three people of a family, including two children, died while three others are battling for their lives after consuming dishes prepared out of cluster beans on which pesticide had been sprayed recently, at K Thimmapur village in Sirwar taluk in the wee hours on Tuesday.

The deceased were identified as Ramesh, (38) and daughters Nagamma (6) and Deepa (5). His wife Padma and two other children — Krishna and Chaitra — are undergoing treatment at the Raichur Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) where Padma’s condition is said to be serious.

After having dinner of cluster beans curry and sambar with roti and rice, the family developed stomach pain and were rushed to a hospital in Lingasugur at 4 am. While Ramesh and Nagamma died at the Lingasugur hospital, Deepa died enroute to RIMS.

The family are migrant workers and had returned from Bengaluru. They had sprayed pesticide on the cluster beans crop on their land and had consumed the same with their meals. Police superintendent Puttamadaiah visited the family’s house on Tuesday and checked the cooked food, the utensils and water used. He also collected information from the villagers.

Speaking to the media, Raichur Deputy Commisisoner Nitish K said, “Padma is on a ventilator at RIMS while the two other children are in ICU. As per preliminary information, they consumed cluster beans which had been sprayed with pesticide without cleaning it properly. The SP has directed the Kavitala police to conduct a thorough investigation and a report will be submitted to the government”.