Delhi: Protests held outside Bihar Bhawan after AES claims 100 lives in Muzaffarpur

People gathered outside the Bihar Bhawan here on Monday to protest against the dying of children due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Muzaffarpur district of Bihar.

Angry protesters, who demanded immediate action by the government, were seen shouting slogans and holding placards that read, "If lives of our kids don't matter, what will" and "Punish all the culprits".

Annie Raja, wife of CPI National Secretary D Raja while talking to ANI said: "Bihar has seen the death of more than 100 children. However, the government is not taking any action or doing any investigation into the matter."

The protesters alleged that the government is not working towards making the health care system more efficient.

"This is not the first time such a thing is happening. Even in 2014 more than 300 children died. There is still no preparedness by the government to control such an outbreak," she further said.

"Health minister of Bihar says it is the fate of the children. Ministers uttering such statements should be removed," Raja said, further asking the Central government to also work towards the matter.

"Where is the Centre's Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Yojana and health insurance scheme?" Raja said.

Ankit, another protester said: "This has happened only because of the negligence of the government and the bad conditions of their hospitals."

According to the officials, the death toll due to encephalitis in Muzaffarpur rose to 100 on Monday.

In the wake of fatalities, Nitish Kumar had announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to families of the deceased. He had also given directions to the Health Department, district administration and doctors to take necessary measures to fight the disease.

AES is a viral disease, which causes mild flu-like symptoms such as high fever, convulsions, and headaches.