Erode college student dies of rabies

COIMBATORE: In an unfortunate incident, a 22-year-old college student died of rabies after being bitten by his pet dog in Erode.

The deceased, N Ramesh, son of Nagaraj, a daily wager from Kanagapuram in Vellode near Erode, was studying in a college in Rangampalayam.

“Some street dogs recently bit his pet dog. And, a week ago, his pet dog, in-turn, bit him. Ignoring the risks involved, he then failed to seek treatment for the dog bite,” police said.

Over the last few days, the health condition of Ramesh started to deteriorate, and the shocked family members admitted him to a private hospital in Erode. He was then shifted to Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital (CMCH), where he began to exhibit symptoms of rabies.

“Despite treatment, he remained restless, aggressive and suffered from continuous salivation. He also showed aversion towards water. He was administered intensive treatment after confirming him to be infected with rabies. Yet, he died without responding to treatment on Thursday night,” police said.

After a post-mortem, the body of the youth was cremated in Coimbatore itself. His family members were also vaccinated for rabies as a precaution. A few months ago, a dog bite victim from Odisha ended his life by slitting his throat with a broken glass in CMCH.