Following the mystery deaths, Jammu and Kashmir's remote Badhaal village in Rajouri district was declared containment zone on Wednesday. Prohibitory orders were imposed on all public and private gatherings in the wake of the death of 17 people belonging to three families, officials said.
Another person belonging to the village, a 24-year-old man identified as Aijaz Ahmad has been admitted to a hospital in a critical condition.
The containment orders have been imposed under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). Section 163 of BNSS gives magistrates the power to issue written orders in urgent situations. These orders can be used to prevent or remedy nuisance or dangers.
According to the order issued by additional district magistrate (Rajouri) Rajeev Kumar Khajuria, the village has been divided into three containment zones – the first covering all families where deaths have occurred.
"The houses of these affected families shall be sealed and entry will be totally restricted for all individuals, including their family members unless otherwise authorised by the designated officers/officials. All public and private gatherings are hereby prohibited within the jurisdiction of these containment zones, to prevent further spread of the infection", the order stated.
In containment zone 2 and for the mandatory continuous health monitoring, the members of all families identified as close contacts of affected individuals are to be shifted to Government Medical College, Rajouri, cites the order.
All households will be covered under the containment zone-3 and staff will be deployed to ensure the continuous monitoring of food consumption,
deployment of police personnel to enforce compliance, and deployment of designated officers to maintain log books, the order said.
It said that the designated officials shall be responsible for monitoring all meals provided to families in containment zones.
"It is mandatory for affected families and their close contacts to consume only the food and water provided by the administration. Any other food items available in the households are strictly prohibited for consumption," the order said.
It ordered the immediate replacement of all food and water supplies and the seizure of all edible materials in the infected households.
The fresh steps were taken after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah visited the village on Tuesday.
Seventeen persons belonging to three families linked to each other have died under suspicious circumstances in the village between December 7 and January 19.
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