Five specially-abled boys, aged 5 to 15 years, have died at Indore's Yugpurush Dham Ashram orphanage since Sunday and over 30 others have been rushed to the hospital. Four of the deaths are suspected to be due to food poisoning from a meal the children ate on Sunday.
Out of the 30, four to five are reported to be in critical condition. The incident has sparked widespread concern and calls for a thorough investigation into the orphanage's food safety practices and overall management.
After the incident, Local Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Om Narayan Badkul was removed from his post following a viral video showing him laughing with the orphanage head, Anita Sharma, while the body of one of the dead boys lay nearby in the orphanage.
The video has sparked outrage and raised questions about the conduct of officials involved in the case.
"On Tuesday morning, we received information that a few children died and some were suffering from vomiting and diarrhoea at Shri Yugpurush Dham Ashram here. The sick children were admitted to hospital," the Additional District Magistrate told news agency ANI.
"An investigation into the matter is underway and a team of doctors and food safety along with a team of municipal corporations were sent for investigation. The Food Safety Department has taken the samples from the spot and after its examination, the reason for the incident will be known," he added.
A probe panel headed by the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) of Indore has been formed to investigate the circumstances leading to the deaths.
Food samples have been collected from the orphanage's kitchen and will be analysed to determine the cause of the suspected food poisoning.
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