LoP Rahul Gandhi to visit Balaghat on Oct 1 over tribal children deaths in MP

Bhopal/Balaghat: Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, is scheduled to arrive in Madhya Pradesh's Balaghat district on October 1 to meet families of tribal children who died amid a health crisis in the district, prominent tribal leader in the state Umang Singhar told IANS.

Singhar said that LoP Rahul Gandhi will visit the affected tribal areas of Baihar and Birsa and meet families of the deceased children to take stock of the situation on the ground.

"The Madhya Pradesh government has become negligent. More than 22 tribal children have died, and Rahul Gandhi will meet the affected families to assess the ground reality," state Assembly LoP Singhar told IANS.

The visit comes amid concern over deaths among Baiga tribal children in remote villages of Balaghat.

According to government figures, 20 children have died in the affected areas, with the deaths prompting questions over healthcare, nutrition and access to treatment in the tribal belt.

A central National Joint Outbreak Response Team investigated 196 cases, including those involving 156 children below 10 years of age.

Its findings pointed to multiple health factors rather than a single disease. Of 64 samples tested, 25 were positive for measles, while 27 of 32 patients tested positive for malaria.

The deaths have brought renewed focus on health and nutrition among tribal communities in Madhya Pradesh.

Notably, the Scheduled Tribes (ST) constitute about 21 per cent of the state's population, according to Census 2011 data, and 47 of the state's 230 Assembly constituencies are reserved for Scheduled Tribes.

Balaghat, a predominantly tribal and forested district bordering Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, was for years among Madhya Pradesh's major Naxal-affected areas.

The state government has recently declared Madhya Pradesh free of Naxalism following security operations and surrenders in Balaghat.

The Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh are scheduled in 2028.

LoP Gandhi's Balaghat visit will come 13 days after his previous visit to Madhya Pradesh.

He had visited Indore on September 19 and addressed the 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' programme, where he raised issues concerning students, education and employment.

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