At least four people died and 10 others were hospitalised in the last 48 hours after allegedly consuming adulterated milk supplied by an unauthorised vendor in Rajamahendravaram (Rajahmundry) town of Andhra Pradesh’s East Godavari district, police said on Monday.
Police registered a case and took the dairy operator into custody for interrogation.
According to East Godavari district superintendent of police (SP) D Narasimha Kishore, anuria (cessation of urine output) and kidney-related cases began surfacing in Chowdeshwari Nagar area from February 16, however, the matter recently came to the fore after two of the patients died.
“The incident came to light only after the condition of five patients turned critical and two of them succumbed on Sunday,” Kishore said.
The SP said the deceased were identified as N Seshagiri Rao (72), Radhakrishna Murthy (74), Tadi Krishnaveni (76) and Tadi Ramani (58). Krishnaveni and Ramani died on Sunday, while the other two patients succumbed on Monday. They all were residents of Chowdeshwari Nagar in the town.
Speaking on the matter in the state legislative assembly, chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu said several victims were admitted to hospitals with symptoms such as vomiting, abdominal pain and kidney-related complications, while two more patients are critical.
“Samples collected from the victims were sent to laboratories in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam for analysis,” he said. The CM further announced an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh each to the kin of the deceased and assured that the government would bear the medical expenses of the patients.
Quoting from the preliminary report received from district officials, Naidu said Varalakshmi Milk Dairy, a private dairy based in Narasapuram village of Korukonda mandal, had been supplying milk regularly to 106 households in the colony.
“Authorities have confirmed that those who fell ill consumed milk supplied by this dairy,” he said.
Naidu said police registered a case based on complaints from the families of the deceased and took the dairy operator, Addala Ganeshwara Rao, into custody for interrogation.
“Strict action would be taken if adulteration is confirmed,” he said.
Meanwhile, district collector Keerthi Chekuri appealed to the public not to panic over the cases.
“Special rapid response teams conducted door-to-door surveys in affected areas and are providing necessary medical assistance,” she said.
The collector said authorities were conducting blood tests of members of households that received milk from the supplier. So far, samples have been collected from 73 families and continuous medical monitoring is ensured.
The animal husbandry department examined 46 cattle and sent samples to scientific and veterinary laboratories. Food safety officials also collected milk, curd and other dairy product samples and sent them to laboratories in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam. Further action will be taken once reports are received, Chekuri said.
“We are awaiting the post-mortem reports of the deceased. The unauthorised dairy unit has been sealed and the milk supplier has been detained. Legal action will follow once the exact cause is established. Preliminary analysis of blood samples indicates that children and the elderly have been the most affected,” she said.
District medical and health officer Dr V Venkateswara Rao said most hospitalised patients are above 60 years of age. Special medical camps have been set up in affected areas and continuous monitoring is underway.