Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Government on Wednesday has ordered a sample test of the litchi fruit being sold across the state. This course of action was decided upon after it came to fore that the toxins present in the fruit were linked with numerous children’s death in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur.
Bihar Government has accepted the outbreak of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in the state and litchi is most commonly blamed for it.
Odisha Health Minister Naba Kishore Das has directed Food Safety Commissioners to undertake a detailed check on the litchi crop. He has also asked them to submit a detailed report the effect of litchi fruit’s toxins on the human body and the modes it could be countered with. He stresses them ascertain whether AES is actually linked with the fruit or not.
Ahead of a two-day CDMO meet in Sachivalaya, the Government needs the report handy.
AES is a condition caused due to a virus. While it is not yet confirmed whether the summer fruit actually causes the disease or not, it is being blamed for the outbreak in Bihar. Extreme heatwave conditions in the state are also to be blamed.
While there has been no known case in Odisha, the government is playing safe to prevent an actual outbreak.
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Ms Kalinga