15 people hospitalized after drinking packaged coconut water, rumours about cholera spark concern

BENGALURU: Fifteen people, including women and children, are hospitalized after drinking packaged coconut water in Mangalore in Karnataka. The coconut water, priced at Rs 10 per litre, was purchased from a factory in Adyaru. This factory also makes ice cream.

The said people experienced vomiting and diarrhea after drinking the packaged coconut water and were transferred to local and other hospitals as their health condition worsened. Following the complaint, health department officials have collected water samples and sent fifteen litres of water to a laboratory in Bengaluru for testing. Following the protests, the authorities closed down the factory and ordered it to be cleaned.

Residents of Adyaru, Kannur and Tumbe are undergoing treatment in hospitals. The condition of those, including two women and a child, remains critical. They are under observation in private hospitals. Doctors inform that the health condition of the rest is improving.

Following the incident, rumours about cholera outbreak spread in Mangaluru and Udupi areas which prompted a response from Health Minister Dinesh Gundurao. “It is neither cholera nor any waterborne infection. People should not panic,” the minister said.