A six-year-old boy with fever and nausea died on his way to hospital in the small hours of Wednesday, prompting family members to claim that he succumbed to sub-10 chill in the district.

The incident is the tenth of its kind reported from across the state in a week. But, the authorities haven’t confirmed if the prevailing cold wave caused the deaths.

Anant Kumar Singh, who was a nursery student at a private school and lived in Muru village of Burmu block, around 30km from the state capital, had been shivering and vomiting since 2am, according to his father Ramjay Singh, a driver by profession.

“Singh’s son complained of cold. His mother covered him with a blanket, but he kept shivering. We decided to take him to a private nursing home at Umedenda, 3km from their house. On the way, the child had loose motion and then he collapsed,” said a neighbour.

Anant was declared brought dead at the nursing home around 3.30am. He was the youngest among four siblings.

Burmu circle officer Sunil Chandra confirmed the death, but didn’t endorse the claim that harsh weather was the reason. “The family says the boy died of cold, but we are yet to ascertain the same. We have though taken precautionary measures in the wake of the report. Bonfire arrangements are being made at town and village squares,” he said.

Capital Ranchi has been grappling with minimum readings around 6°C for the past 72 hours. On its outskirts, the Celsius has plunged below 4°C.

A doctor in Calcutta said the boy might have contracted viral infection. “If his death was so rapid, the cause is more likely virus rather than cold.”

Earlier this week, a homeless youth with barely any warm clothes on was found dead near the Durga temple on Ratu Road in Sukhdeonagar. Local residents had claimed that he died of cold.

In Garhwa, on the north-western fringes of the state where the minimum reading has been below 10°C, three cold deaths have been reported in the past 48 hours.

While Bhikari Bhuiyan (45) died in a village under Dhurki block on Tuesday, Piru Bhuiyan (75) and Dukhani Kuar (72), both residents of Ranka block, purportedly succumbed to severe temperatures on Wednesday.

A section of the media had reported five more cold wave deaths on Sunday. Two persons died in Hazaribagh and one each in Palamau, Singhbhum region and Dhanbad, the reports had said. Home secretary S.K.G. Rahate had not confirmed the reports.