Agartala, April 9 (IANS) At least five people of a family, including a child, fell ill in Tripura after consuming wild poisonous mushrooms, health officials said on Sunday.

A doctor of a government hospital in Sepahijala District's Bishramganj primary health center said that five people of a tribal family were admitted to the hospital on Saturday night after they started vomiting and feeling stomach ache following consuming wild mushrooms.

The doctor said that when the condition of the ailing people, including a three-year-old child deteriorated, they were referred to the government-run Govind Ballabh Pant Medical College and Hospital for better medical treatment.

Every year, many people, mostly tribals, die or fall sick in the northeastern states after consuming wild mushrooms, and some of them often succumb to their illness.

The indigenous people cannot identify the wild mushrooms that are unsafe for consumption. Mass awareness is necessary against the consumption of wild mushrooms, the health officials pointed out.

--IANS

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