In a bizarre incident, seven senior Uttar Pradesh government officials were critically injured when a swarm of bees attacked them while they were inspecting the piped water system in Devgarh village, about 35 km away from the district headquarters, on Sunday.
The injured included ADM Rajesh Srivastava, CDO Kamalkant, Nayab Tehsildar Ghanendra Tiwari, Sub-Inspector Dinesh Kumar, Lekhpals Suryansh and Shashank, and a policeman.
According to eyewitness accounts, the ADM was stung by about 500 bees. He has been referred to Jhansi Medical College Hospital in critical condition.
CDO Kamalakant ran away and buried his face in the soil, but the bees still stung him in several places on his body. Meanwhile, Special Secretary Sunil Kumar Verma also fled the spot as soon as the attack began.
All the officials, along with Sunil Verma, Special Secretary in the Silk Development and Youth Welfare Department, had gone to Devgarh village, 35 km from Lalitpur, to inspect the water supply system.
Hearing the officers’ cries for help, villagers rushed to the spot with blankets to shield themselves from the bees. The forest department and the police were promptly informed about the incident.
In view of the serious condition of ADM Rajesh Srivastava, an ambulance was called to the spot. All the injured officials are now undergoing treatment at the hospital. District Magistrate Akshay Tripathi also visited the Medical College to oversee the situation.