Elderly Woman Dies, 19 Hospitalised in Rajouri Due to Gastroenteritis Outbreak

SRINAGAR: An elderly woman died and at least 19 others were hospitalised following an outbreak of gastroenteritis in Sakri village of Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district, officials said on Saturday. The 75-year-old woman, according to officials, had underlying co-morbidities and died after suffering from acute diarrhoea.

According to The Print, the outbreak has been traced to water contamination, with health authorities confirming the presence of Escherichia coli (E.coli) in water samples collected from the affected area.

The incident has triggered alarm in the region, with 19 villagers requiring hospitalisation at Government Medical College (GMC) Hospital Rajouri over the past 72 hours. Among the patients, several complained of persistent diarrhoea, vomiting, and severe dehydration, while two critical cases have been referred to GMC Jammu for specialised care.

Health officials said that a mobile medical team was promptly deployed to the village and treated several others with mild symptoms on-site. “This is a confirmed case of waterborne contamination due to E.coli,” a health department official stated, linking the incident to a similar outbreak in Kotli Bagla two weeks ago where 30 people had fallen ill.

Medical teams collected water samples immediately after the first complaints were reported, and the lab results confirmed E.coli presence, typically associated with faecal contamination and poor sanitation.

The administration has urged residents to boil drinking water and has initiated steps to clean and disinfect local water sources. Meanwhile, public health officials have intensified surveillance in nearby villages to prevent the further spread of the illness.

An investigation is underway to trace the exact source of contamination and take remedial action to ensure the safety of drinking water in the region.