Malkangiri: In a bizarre act, residents in Pasranpalli village under Padia block in this district did the unthinkable when researchers across the globe are struggling for a vaccine to ward off the threat of Covid-19, a report said.
Reports said around 50 children of the locality were served country liquor by villagers for what they claimed will boost their immunity and as a prevention against Covid-19.
The matter came to the fore after a video of the incident went viral in social media. Recently, the number of positive patients in the district has increased to 306 leading to panic among the residents.
The residents believe that consumption of country liquor will keep the novel coronavirus at bay.
Moreover, social distancing measures were not adhered to as the children sat close to each other to drink liquor without wearing face masks.
Earlier, in a superstitious act, a sorcerer allegedly thrashed an ailing woman and fed her pig feces to ‘cure’ her of an ailment from which she was suffering from.
This incident sparked sharp reactions in various quarters after pictures of the incident were found circulating on social media. They said this is unfortunate that such an incident has happened at a time when there is panic all around due to coronavirus and social distancing norms were flouted.
When contacted, tribal leader and Zilla Parishad chairman Dasarath Padiami rejected the charges, stating that they had served not country liquor but traditional red ant preparations to the children. After reports surfaced, Padia police and Padia block administration have launched a probe into the incident.
PNN