Patna, June 19: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday parried questions over rising deaths of children due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Muzaffarpur. Nitish Kumar refused to take questions from the media over the outbreak of Encephalitis. According to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), the death toll due to AES has reached 128 in Bihar.

In a video, Kumar is seen evading questions from media and leaves without saying anything. Earlier today, his deputy and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sushil Kumar Modi conveniently dodged questions on deaths due to Encephalitis. He was confronted by reporters when he was addressing media about the non-performing assets (NPA) crisis in the state and the performance of banks in the last financial year. All About the Symptoms, Causes, Treatment and Prevention of Encephalitis.

"I made it clear at the very start that this is a meeting of the bankers’ organisation, for any other topic other than the ones related to banking, I will speak at a different occasion. If you want to ask anything related to banking please do so," Modi replied. The sight of Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH), where over 300 children ailing with Encephalitis were admitted, is dismal despite the rising death toll. Can Lychees Be Poisonous? Litchis Linked to Encephalitis Deaths in Muzaffarpur – How to Eat This Fruit Safely.

Nitish Kumar evades questions on children's deaths due to Encephalitis:

"The condition has remained the same for a long time. There’s no bed for the patients and we don’t have any other place to go with our ailing children. It is not safe to stay like this in the summer," an attended accompanying a child was quoted by ANI as saying. The doctors and health officials are still in dark about the exact nature of the disease and the precise cause of deaths.

On Tuesday, Nitish Kumar visited the hospital to take stock of the situation. On Sunday, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan also visited the facility and chaired a meeting over the issue with central and state representatives. Both the leaders had to face public outrage as some people staged protests during their visits.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 19, 2019 09:04 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).