Palamu (Jharkhand), March 12 – More than 100 villagers fell ill after allegedly consuming contaminated food at a wedding feast in Bohita village, located under the Satbarwa block of Palamu district in Jharkhand, officials said on Thursday.
The incident caused panic in the village. In response, the district administration has set up a temporary medical camp at the village school to treat the affected people.
Officials said that around 10 people are in critical condition and have been referred to the Medininagar Medical College and Hospital (MMCH) and the Community Health Centre (CHC) in Lesliganj for better treatment.
According to locals, Harishankar Chandravanshi, a resident of Bohita village, had organized a feast for villagers and guests ahead of the wedding ceremony of his son, Lavkush Sharma, on Wednesday evening. The menu reportedly included puris, vegetables, and bundi.
Within hours of consuming the food, several people began complaining of vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness, and severe stomach pain. By Thursday morning, reports of illness started emerging from several households in the village.
Villager Sudeshwar Singh said that some people experienced sudden weakness and dizziness while heading to the fields in the morning, and the number of affected individuals soon crossed 100.
Following the sudden surge in patients, the health department converted the primary school at Pokharpar Tola into a temporary treatment centre. Due to a shortage of beds, many patients were administered saline on mats laid out on the school veranda.
Palamu Civil Surgeon Dr. Anil Kumar Srivastava reached the village along with a team of health officials to oversee the relief measures. He directed that critically ill patients be immediately shifted to hospitals by ambulance, while others be treated at the temporary camp in the village.
Four ambulances have been deployed in the area to respond to emergencies.
The Civil Surgeon said that the incident appears to be a case of food poisoning, though the exact cause will be confirmed only after testing the food samples. A medical team has been stationed in the village and is closely monitoring the situation.
