Odisha jaundice toll jumps to 19

Bhubaneswar: Two more deaths due to jaundice were confirmed in Odisha's Sambalpur town Friday, taking the toll from the water-borne disease to 19.

Two hundred and ninety-three new cases of jaundice have been confirmed in the last four days pushing the total number of people affected in the town since May 2014 to 2,308, director of public health K.C. Das told IANS.

While Satrughan Pradhan, a 54-year-old man died Dec 27, Jamini Panda, a 25-year-old woman died two days later, he said.

A poor drainage system and damaged water supply pipelines appeared to be the main reason for jaundice outbreak in the town, which has a population of nearly 200,000.

Due to leakage in the rusty water supply pipelines drain water seeped through and contaminated the drinking water.