The death toll in the temple ‘prasada’ incident at Kicchugatti Maramma temple in Sulwadi village of Chamarajanagar district has gone up to 11.
The Chamarajanagar police have detained five persons in connection with the food poisoning. Superintendent of Police Dharmendra Kumar Meena said three of them are temple administrators and two are other suspects, who have all been detained for questioning.
Chamarajanagar District Health Officer K.H. Prasad said 11 people have been confirmed dead and 29 are still battling for life. Barring four critical patients being treated at the State-run K.R. Hospital here, the remaining patients in serious condition are on life support system at six private hospitals.
Of the 104 people affected by the tragedy — including the 11 dead — 93 patients have been shifted to Mysuru from hospitals in Kamagere and Kollegal since Friday evening, with the highest number of patients, about 30, admitted to K.R. Hospital alone, and the remaining in seven private hospitals, the DHO said.
The bodies of the deceased had been handed over to the family members and relatives after conducting post-mortem. The last rites of four victims were performed at Bidarahalli on Saturday afternoon.
A doctor at K.R. Hospital said, “The next 48 hours are crucial, and will determine the condition of critically-ill patients in ICU.”
The Chamarajanagar DHO said the samples of ‘prasada’ and food substances retrieved from the bodies after the post-mortem had been sent to Mysuru-based Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) for examination.
The deceased were identified as Krishna Nayak, Anil, Preetham (7), Shantharaju (42), Gopiyamma (40), Annaiappa (80), Anitha (12), Doddamaraiah (84), Papanna (50), Rachaiah (65) and Sathivelu (28). The deceased belonged to villages around Hanur, Ramapura and Marthalli.
