Third infant deaths in four days at Attappady; Kerala govt orders enquiry

Palakkad: The death of a three-day-old infant at a tribal hamlet at nearby Attappady on Friday, the third such in the last four days, prompted the Kerala government to order a multi-departmental inquiry into the incident.

The deaths occurred in Agali and Puthur regions in the area. Health minister Veena George directed the Directorate of Health Services (DHS) to investigate the incident.

Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Backward Classes, K Radhakrishnan, will visit the backward hamlet in the district on Saturday to take stock of the situation.

T V Anupama, the Director of the Scheduled Tribes Development Department, has been entrusted to enquire into the matter and submit a report soon.

The Minister will also take part in a meeting in the morning at Agali in the district. The infant died at Mannarcaud hospital in the district on Friday, Palakkad DMO Ramadevi told PTI, adding that this was the third such incident in the last four days.

”The post-mortem will be conducted at the District Hospital in Palakkad,” the DMO said, adding that this was the seventh infant death in the tribal hamlet this year. Medical officers said some were Intrauterine Deaths (IUD) and other children died due to sickle cell anemia.