Archive · 15 Aug 2026
Balaghat Child Deaths: MLA Claims 19, Health Department Says 8
In the Balaghat district of Madhya Pradesh in India, many children got very sick with diseases like malaria, typhoid, diarrhoea and skin infections.
These children live in small, faraway tribal villages called Baiga villages.
128 children were so sick that they had to be treated in the hospital.
Most of them got better — 97 children were discharged after recovering, and 31 are still being treated.
Sadly, some children died, but people disagree about how many.
The health department says 8 children died.
A local leader named Sanjay Uike says 19 children died and gave a list of their names.
The health department is now asking village doctors for detailed reports to find out the truth.
Doctors also checked 2,100 people in the area, and 530 of them had signs of illness.
Most of the children who died were not taken to the hospital in time, according to the health department.
An outbreak of seasonal diseases has hospitalised 128 children in tribal Baiga villages of Balaghat district, Madhya Pradesh.
The health department reports 8 child deaths, while Congress MLA Sanjay Uike claims 19 children died in his Baihar constituency.
The health department has sought a detailed ground report from block medical officers over the child deaths.
Of 2,100 people screened, 530 showed symptoms; 97 were treated in hospitals and 402 recovered at home.
Of the 8 deaths reported by the health department, 7 children were not brought to the hospital; a severely malnourished 3-year-old girl died after admission.
- Who
- Children in tribal Baiga villages of Balaghat district, Madhya Pradesh; the health department and Congress MLA (Baihar) Sanjay Uike are in dispute over the death count.
- What
- An outbreak of seasonal diseases has hospitalised 128 children; the health department reports 8 child deaths while MLA Sanjay Uike claims 19 deaths.
- When
- Recent outbreak; collector Kumar Satyam and the health department team visited the affected villages on a Friday (no exact date given in the articles).
- Where
- Machhurda, Adori, Gathiya, Bondari, Korka, Kohnimor and Kundeksa villages in the tribal-dominated Baiga areas of Balaghat district, Madhya Pradesh.
- Why
- An outbreak of seasonal diseases including malaria, typhoid, diarrhoea and skin diseases among children in remote tribal villages.
Health Department
Congress MLA Sanjay Uike
Number of child deaths
Health Department
The health department says 8 children died due to seasonal diseases like malaria, dehydration and typhoid; 7 of the 8 were never brought to a hospital, and one hospitalised 3-year-old girl was severely malnourished.
Congress MLA Sanjay Uike
Congress MLA Sanjay Uike claims 19 children died in the Baihar constituency and released a list of the deceased.
- Reported child deaths (health department)
- 8
- Deaths claimed by MLA Sanjay Uike
- 19
- Children hospitalised
- 128 (97 discharged, 31 under treatment)
- People screened
- 2,100 (530 with symptoms)
- Diseases reported
- Malaria, typhoid, diarrhoea, skin diseases
- Affected villages
- Machhurda, Adori, Gathiya, Bondari, Korka, Kohnimor, Kundeksa
- Deaths outside hospital
- 7 of the 8 reported deaths