Malkangiri: Panic gripped guardians after two students of Kalaganda Ashram Vidyalaya in Kaldapali panchayat under Padia block in Malkangiri district died of an unknown disease Monday and Tuesday respectively. Another 11 students who are suffering from this mysterious disease are undergoing treatment at the Malkangiri district headquarters hospital and the Padia community health centre (CHC). Doctors are yet to ascertain the exact nature of the disease and the reason behind its spread. The deceased students who died in the last two days were identified as Pradip Muchaki (Class VII) and Shantu Kurami (Class VIII). While Pradip died at the hospital, Shantu died after returning home.
Sources said that students turned feverish and experienced swelling on their limbs and body ache few days back. They were admitted to the hospital and many are still undergoing treatment. On being informed, district welfare officer Krupasindhu Behera visited the school Wednesday and gathered information about the deceased students and those infected.
As per his instructions, a medical team has rushed to the school from Koraput to supervise the treatment of the students. When contacted, Malkangiri District Collector Vishal Singh said Wednesday blood samples of the affected students have been collected and sent for examination. The report will come in a short while following which a decision regarding the process of treatment will be taken.