Two children die of snakebite after parents mistook symptoms for stomach ache

A nine-year-old girl and her six-year-old brother died after being bitten by a venomous snake in Sehli village of Kotli area in Mandi district, Himachal Pradesh, with their parents initially treating the children for what they believed was stomach pain.

The deceased have been identified as Kavya, daughter of Mahendra Kumar, aged nine years, and Naksh, son of Mahendra Kumar, aged six years, both residents of Sehli village in Kotli tehsil. Both children were first brought to the regional hospital in Mandi for treatment, from where they were referred to Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Government Medical College and Hospital in Nerchowk. Upon arrival at Nerchowk, doctors declared both children dead.

Sequence of events through the night

Around 2:30 in the early morning, Kavya woke her parents and complained of stomach pain. A short while later, Naksh also complained of stomach ache. The family members initially assumed it was due to cold or indigestion and applied warm water bags to the children's stomachs.

Approximately half an hour later, Kavya began vomiting and crying in pain. About five minutes after that, Naksh's condition also deteriorated. During this time, the family's attention was drawn to a large black snake crawling near the door. After considerable effort, the snake was removed from the house.

After seeing the snake, the family suspected the children had been bitten and immediately rushed both of them to Mandi hospital for treatment. From there, they were referred to Nerchowk, but on reaching the hospital, both were declared dead.

Hospital administration's account

Sadar MLA Anil Sharma gathered information about the entire incident from the Superintendent of Mandi Hospital. According to the hospital administration, the family brought both children to the hospital around five o'clock in the morning. However, the snakebite incident had occurred two to three hours earlier. The children were given anti-venom. After this, the family took them to the Medical College at Nerchowk on their own without getting a referral, where both died.

Police investigation and post-mortem findings

Upon receiving information, the in-charge of Kotli police post reached Nerchowk Medical College and recorded statements from family members and relatives. The police also conducted inspection of the bodies and photography.

Additional Superintendent of Police Abhimanyu Verma said that after the post-mortem, doctors have stated snake venom as the prima facie cause of death. Samples from both children have been collected for examination. The police have initiated action in the case under Section 194 of the Indian Citizen Security Code. The family members have not expressed any suspicion.

MLA raises questions on health system

MLA Anil Sharma expressed grief over the death of the two innocent children due to snakebite in Sehli village of Mandi mandal. The MLA said he has been in Delhi for the past four days for some work, where he received information about the incident.

Anil Sharma described the state's health system as worrying and said that he has raised the issue of health facilities several times in the Assembly. After his efforts, a gynecology specialist at the regional hospital in Mandi has started working. A pediatric specialist has also been posted, who will take charge from Monday.

Controversy over relief funds

The MLA alleged that due to two holidays, government relief funds could not reach the family on time. According to him, at the suggestion of the Patwari, the Panchayat Pradhan and Up-Pradhan collected money from villagers and immediately helped the family.

There is an allegation that a Congress leader asked for this amount to be returned so that she herself could provide assistance to the family. Anil Sharma called this insensitivity and said that relief funds are given through administrative process and there should be no politics in it. He said that instead of doing politics at the time of grief, everyone should support the affected family. If the Congress leader wanted to help, she could have helped on her own.

The MLA emphasized that at the time of sorrow, rather than engaging in politics, all should stand with the grieving family. This tragic incident in the remote village of Mandi district has brought into focus both the challenges of timely snakebite treatment and the broader questions about emergency health services in Himachal Pradesh's rural areas.