Food poison whiff in death of woman and twin sons in Odisha

BERHAMPUR: A woman and her twin sons, aged around five years, died while her husband and motherin- law fell sick suspectedly due to food poisoning at Seragada in Ganjam district on Monday. The deceased were identified as Sabitri Sahu (35), a teacher in Mahatma Gandhi High School, and her two sons Sibesh and Pritesh. While the condition of Savitri’s husband Prashant Dakua (40) is stable, her mother-in-law Urmila is stated to be critical.

Sources said after having dinner on Sunday night, the family went to bed. When they didn’t open the door of their house on Monday morning, neighbours became suspicious and peeped through the window. They found the five-member family lying unconscious on the floor. Neighbours broke open the door and rushed all five of them to Seragada hospital where doctors declared Sabitri and her two kids dead. While Prashant regained consciousness, Urmila was shifted to MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur in a critical condition. The three bodies were sent to Aska hospital for autopsy. Ganjam ASP Ajay Mishra said no injury marks were found on the bodies.

The exact reason for their deaths can be ascertained after the autopsy report arrives. On the other hand, after regaining his consciousness, Prasant told police that all five members of his family ate roti, milk, paneer and mixed vegetable curry. After midnight, Sibesh and Pritesh fell sick but after being given medicines, they went to sleep. At around 5 am, Prasant, Sabitri and Urmila started to vomit. Prasant decided to take his family members to hospital and left home to hire an autorickshaw.

Unable to find any three-wheeler, he took his wife’s scooty and reached Seragada hospital with a friend. He was administered saline and after over an hour, he became stable and returned home. Prasant claimed that he took both his sons to hospital but the kids were declared brought dead. He, however, failed to explain how Sabitri and Urmila reached the hospital. Aska SDPO Uma Charan Singh said efforts are underway to record the statement of Urmila. “Her version will help police know the exact details of the incident,” he added.