The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and other organisations on Wednesday confirmed that they found pesticide residues which could be the reason behind the outbreak of the mysterious illness in Eluru, Andhra Pradesh's West Godavari district headquarters, a state government statement said.
"The experts said a long term in-depth study is required to understand how these residues of pesticides entered the human body," it said. AP Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has entrusted this responsibility to AIIMS, and the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT).
He held a video conference with experts on the mysterious illness. The CM also instructed officials to conduct tests across West Godavari, including on drinking water samples from all sources in all the districts.
"The samples should be collected systematically and should be analysed with experts. AIIMS and IICT should conduct a deep study in the long term on the causes of the outbreak in Eluru. I have asked the Chief Secretary to prepare an action plan for this," he said.
Reddy also said that organic farming should be encouraged and awareness created on this among farmers. The symptoms of the illness included seizures, dizziness, fainting spells, headache and vomiting. Thereafter, the Centre had rushed a team of medical experts to Eluru on December 8.
The All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, has tied up with other institutions to study the presence of organochlorine and organophosphates in the blood of the affected people. After studying some samples, AIIMS found the presence of lead and nickel only in two of the 40 urine samples.
Until now, one patient has succumbed to the illness, while others have been treated in hospitals. Symptoms of the mysterious illness included three to five minutes of epileptic fits without repetition, forgetfulness, anxiety, vomiting, headache and back pain.
Eluru, which is 58 km north-east of Vijayawada, is a coastal paddy cultivation area and aquaculture hub.
