In two incidents of a stray dog attack reported in Badanahatti village of Kurugodu taluk of Ballari district, two children, who suffered grievous injuries, have died of the injuries and these cases came to light on Thursday.
The deceased have been identified as Surakshita and Shant Kumar, who died on November 21 and November 22, respectively. While Surakshita was three years old, Shant Kumar was aged seven. They both were bitten by a stray dog on November 1.
The stray dog, which was said to be rabid, was beaten to death by villagers on November 18 after the dog attacked another girl in the village. However, this girl has recovered now.
In the wake of these deaths, Deputy Commissioner Pavan Kumar Malipati has asked the District Health and Family Welfare Officer to submit a report on the incident. He also warned that action will be taken against doctors if their alleged negligence is found to be the reason for the death of both the children.
District Health Officer H.L. Janardhan, speaking to The Hindu, said that the incident took place on November 1. After the incident, Surakshita was in the Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS) for nearly 10 days, where she was administered three doses of vaccination. The last dose of vaccination was administered at a community health centre in her village.
Whereas, Shant Kumar’s parents consulted a doctor in a private hospital. However, he was not administered the anti-rabies injection even after the doctor’s advice. Initially, the parents did not reveal the dog bite to the doctor, the officer said.
Dr. Janardhan said that he will submit a report on the incident to the Deputy Commissioner on Monday.
