Puri, Jan 21: At least four persons have died of suspected diarrhoea in Kanas block of Puri district, officials said on Tuesday.
Villagers attributed the deaths to consumption of polluted water from Daya river.
After getting the information, district officials visited the affected villages, provided medicines and advised people not to use the Daya river water.
They district administration has also started distributing drinking water through tankers.
Puri Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO) Rupabhanu Mishra said a joint inspection was carried out in the diarrhoea-affected villages.
The death due to diarrhoea would be confirmed after proper investigation, he said.
The villagers are being forced to use the polluted water from Daya river for drinking and other purposes since most of the tube wells installed in the villages are lying defunct, said a villager.
A medical team has been sent to the Kanas block hospital to treat the affected patients. The district administration has also asked the RWSS division to install tube wells and make provisions for supply of drinking water in the areas.
