Karnataka CM orders probe as over 20 die of heart attacks in Hassan

Bengaluru: Amid a recent surge in heart-attack-related deaths in Hassan district, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday expressed serious concern and announced the formation of an expert committee headed by the Director of Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research to identify the causes and provide findings.

He urged everyone to visit the nearest health centre immediately for a check-up if they have symptoms such as chest pain or difficulty breathing, and not to ignore these signs.  

The chief minister said that more than twenty people have died due to heart attacks in the past month alone in just one district of Hassan.

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“The government is taking this matter very seriously. To identify the exact cause of these series of deaths and to find solutions, a committee of experts has been formed under the leadership of Dr Ravindranath, Director of Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, and they have been instructed to submit a study report within 10 days,” he said, in a post on ‘X’, news agnecy PTI reported.

According to him, orders were given to the same committee back in February to conduct a thorough study on the reasons behind sudden deaths among young people in the state, and whether the COVID vaccines could have had any adverse effects. In this regard, the process of examining and analysing heart patients is also underway.

“We too value the lives of children, youth, and innocent people who have their entire lives ahead of them, and we share the concerns of their families,” he said.

Siddaramaiah condemned the actions of BJP leaders, alleging that they are using such matters for their political gains.

“It cannot be denied that the hasty approval and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine to the public could also be a reason for these deaths, as several studies worldwide have recently indicated that COVID vaccines could be a cause for the increasing number of heart attacks. Before the BJP criticise us on this matter, they should ask their conscience,” he added.

The chief minister said the state government is fully committed to finding the true cause behind these sudden series of deaths in Hassan district and across the state and to preventing them.

“With this goal, we have already implemented schemes like Hridaya Jyothi and Gruha Arogya to monitor public health. Based on the report from the expert committee under Dr Ravindranath’s guidance, necessary actions will also be taken. As a government, we are making every possible effort to protect the health of the people,” he said.

According to the health department, a directive has also been issued to form a district-level committee to verify the facts of each reported cases of heart attack death in the media. The committee, headed by Dr Ravindranath, has been instructed to investigate this matter in collaboration with Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences and to submit a report within 10 days.

Health Minister Dinesh Gundo Rao said the Dr Ravindranath committee will look into these deaths, conduct an audit, collect all the necessary information, and check for any abnormalities or variations.

“We’ve taken it seriously. If there are any factors beyond medical reasons, those will also be examined and verified. A proper scientific analysis will be done once the report is ready. We have asked the committee to submit the report within 10 days, and based on that, we will take further decisions,” he told reporters here, reports PTI.

Among the reported deaths due to heart attacks in Hassan, four were in the age group of 20 years and below, one in the age group of 21-29 years, five were in the age group of 30-40 years, seven deaths were in the age group of 41-59 years and one death was in the age group of above 60 years, the health department added.

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