At least 32 children have died in India's Balaghat district since May amid outbreaks of measles and malaria.

At least 32 children have died in India's Balaghat district since May amid outbreaks of measles and malaria.

At least 32 children have died in India's Balaghat district since May amid outbreaks of measles and malaria.

At least 32 children have died in India's Balaghat district since May amid outbreaks of measles and malaria.

At least 32 children have died in India's Balaghat district since May amid outbreaks of measles and malaria.

At least 32 children have died in India's Balaghat district since May amid outbreaks of measles and malaria.

Bhopal, Oct 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday put the spotlight on gaps in healthcare, education, welfare delivery and land rights in Madhya Pradesh's tribal belt during his visit to Balaghat, where he met families who lost their children amid reports of illness and malnutrition and urged the government to plug the leaks. LoP Rahul Gandhi's visit to Jagla village in Birsa block came against the backdrop of a dispute over the number of deaths among tribal children. While the Madhya Pradesh administration has acknowledged 32 deaths, the Congress has claimed that the real figure is 43.

YouTube video by Al Jazeera English

The Instagram accounts of three independent journalists — Bindu Gurjar, Lokbhadra Singh, and Monika Singh — were reportedly suspended earlier this month after they reported extensively on the deaths of tribal children in Madhya Pradesh’s Balaghat district, and raised questioned about the discrepancies in the government claims surrounding the death. While Bindu and Monika’s accounts […]

Scroll travelled to Balaghat to investigate the mysterious outbreak. We found an absent state and lack of healthcare facilities had led to at least 25 deaths.

    In a major development highlighting weaknesses in one of India’s most critical identity systems, Balaghat Police have arrested a software engineer accused of running a long-standing Aadhaar updation fraud. The suspect, 39-year-old Mohsin Khan, is believed to have operated an illegal biometric manipulation setup for over ten years, using cloned fingerprints, fabricated iris data, and unauthorized software to carry out Aadhaar updates. Officials reported that Khan, a resident of Bharveli, allegedly exploited security gaps by using Virtual Private Network (VPN) tools to disguise his physical location, making it appear as though he was operating from a legitimate Aadhaar enrolment centre. The case surfaced after a formal complaint was filed at the Bharveli Police Station, prompting a police team to raid the location and arrest Khan. During the raid, authorities confiscated several suspicious devices and tools, including: * Laptops loaded with biometric tampering software * Silicone-based fake fingerprints * Digital replicas of iris scans * High-precision fingerprint recording machines * Aadhaar update hardware not connected to any authorized centre Investigators noted that several of the seized items are not easily available in the open market, indicating that the accused may have imported or custom-built them to breach UIDAI’s authentication safeguards. Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Nihit Upadhyay confirmed that Khan allegedly created biometric duplicates of certified Aadhaar operators. These forged credentials were then used to access the Aadhaar portal under their identities. "Preliminary investigation indicates that the accused replicated fingerprints and iris data of multiple authorized operators. He then used these biometric credentials to run Aadhaar updation activities without physical presence or departmental approval," the ASP said. Police also revealed that Khan utilized artificial iris models engineered to mimic human eye patterns, allowing him to bypass UIDAI’s advanced iris-authentication mechanisms. Early findings suggest that the illegal setup may have been active since 2011, making it one of the longest-running Aadhaar-related cybercrimes detected in the area. Khan allegedly submitted tenders using the identities of family members and acquaintances to obtain Aadhaar updation kits and operator credentials, all of which he kept under his control. Authorities now suspect that thousands of Aadhaar profiles may have been altered, raising concerns over potential identity theft, financial fraud, and unauthorized access to government schemes or banking services. Sources indicate that Khan may have benefited from bureaucratic contacts or administrative support, which might explain how he operated for so many years without detection. Investigators are analyzing whether the case is part of a larger organized data-fraud network. The ongoing investigation includes examination of: * Digital payment and transaction records * Forensic data from seized devices * Aadhaar update logs * Client and network activity patterns Khan is expected to be placed under police remand for additional interrogation. The case has renewed discussions around the safety of India’s biometric-based identity infrastructure. Cybersecurity specialists caution that unauthorized biometric cloning poses a significant threat to national databases, banking systems, and citizen privacy. Police have intensified the probe, and officials anticipate more arrests and disclosures in the coming days.

The outbreak became deadlier for the children because many of them were malnourished.

The petition alleged that children were not receiving adequate medical care, with around 400 children being treated in a hospital that has only 50 beds.