2 more AES deaths in Muzaffarpur, toll rises to 152

Two more children died in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district on Sunday due to acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) even as officials asserted that afflictions and casualties had begun to dwindle with the onset of rains.

Both the deaths took place at the S K Medical College and Hospital, where 431 children, including two in the past 12 hours, have been admitted for AES treatment since June 1, according to figures released by the district administration. The total number of AES patients who have died at the SKMCH is 110.

"There is a perceptible decline in the number of children who are being admitted with brain fever as also the number of deaths," hospital superintendent Sunil Kumar Shahi said. "It has always been observed that AES strikes at the peak of summer and the outbreak halts with the onset of rains."