11 Members of One Handwara Family Suspected to Have Consumed ‘Poisonous Wild Herb’ Hospitalised; Condition of 3 Stated to Be Critical

Srinagar, Mar 30: At least eleven members of a family in a Handwara village were hospitalized in an unconscious condition on suspicion of having consumed some ‘poisonous wild herb’.

Reports said that a family in Shirhama Mawar comprising eleven members were found lying in an unconscious state by a neighbor on Tuesday evening.

On sensing an emergency, the villagers took all members to PHC Qalamabad where the doctors suggested them to take the victims to District Hospital Handwara. On initial assessment at the hospital, the doctors referred all of them to SMHS Hospital Srinagar hospital.

Identified as Abdul Aziz Malla, Mohammad Akbar Malla, Zooni Begum, Bashir Ahmad Malla, Naseer Ahmad Malla, Naseer Ahmad Malla, Parvaiz Ahmad Malla besides three daughters of Mohammad Akbar Malla and an another boy, the condition of three Abdul Aziz Malla, Mohammad Akbar Malla and Bashir Ahmad Malla is said to be critical.

A medical officer at DH Handwara said that prima facie it seems that the herbs (forest vegetables) they consumed were poisonous in nature. gns