2 tribal children die, 53 fall ill after chloroquine reaction in Andhra village

A tribal student died and dozens fell ill in Gollaguppa village of Yetapaka mandal in Andhra Pradesh's Polavaram district, after reportedly suffering adverse reactions to chloroquine tablets administered as malaria prophylaxis at a local health camp.

The trigger was an earlier death. Student Paddam Roja died of suspected malaria in the village last Friday. Days later, local doctors ran a health camp and gave chloroquine tablets to 73 children at a government school and an anganwadi centre. Some reports put the count at 71 children administered tablets, with 53 to 75 later falling ill, a discrepancy that has not been officially resolved.

Seven-year-old Madavi Jamuna developed vomiting at home and was rushed to the primary health centre in Polavaram, where she was declared brought dead. Her body was moved to Bhadrachalam for autopsy. Several other accounts report a second child's death, though this remains unconfirmed by official sources.

Twenty of the affected children were reported seriously ill, one unconscious, and are being treated at the Government Area Hospital in Bhadrachalam. Hospital superintendent Dr Rajashekhar Reddy and other doctors from nearby areas are attending to them. Chintoor ITDA project officer Shubham Nokhwal and assistant superintendent of police B Hemanth Kumar reached Bhadrachalam to monitor the response.

Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has ordered a comprehensive inquiry into the incident, according to state officials.

The episode has stirred concern among tribal rights groups over the safety protocols followed in mass drug administration drives in remote agency areas, where malaria remains endemic and health camps are often the only point of contact between children and medical care.