Government Medical College, Rajouri, has claimed a breakthrough in finding an antidote to the poison that is suspected to have caused the death of 17 people, including 14 children, in Budhal village in the last two months.

Medical college principal Amarjeet Singh Bhatia said all the 15 patients administered atropine had recovered. “There has been a 100 per cent recovery rate in patients who were given atropine,” Bhatia said.

The mystery ailment had triggered panic in the area, prompting Union home minister Amit Shah to order an inter-ministerial team to find the cause behind the disease and the deaths. Teams of experts were rushed to the area to handle the crisis. Doctors said atropine’s ability to prevent deaths was a “chance discovery”.

The government has lodged 300 people, who had come in contact with the deceased or ailing persons in quarantine centres, imposing restrictions similar to the Covid-19 pandemic, although infection has been ruled out.

The symptoms of theailment included vomiting, fever, dehydration and loss of consciousness.

The principal said 11 patients recovered at the hospital, three at the Government Medical College, Jammu, and one at PGI, Chandigarh. In all these cases, the patients were administered atropine, he said. “We were referring the patients to Jammu tertiary care and were simply watching people come and die,”he said.

Experts said since atropine is effective against organophosphorus poisoning, it is believed the particular toxin might have caused the deaths.