Cattle dies too after having nerium oleander soon after death of Alappuzha native who accidently ate toxic plant

Thiruvananthapuram: Close on the heels of the death of a 24-year old lady who had accidentally consuming the flowers and leaves of Nerium oleander, a cow and a calf too died reportedly after consuming Nerium oleander leaves.

A woman hailing from Thengamam in Pathanamthitta said that her cow and calf became sick after ingesting leaves of Nerium oleander and subsequently died on Friday. The oleander leaves got mixed up with the grass collected from the neighbouring areas to feed the cattle.

District animal husbandry authorities conducted postmortem examinations to determine the exact cause of death.

Last week, Alappuzha native Soorya Surendran died after collapsing at the Kochi international airport while she was about to board a flight to the UK for job. She had told the doctors during treatment that she accidentally consumed Nerium oleander flower and leaf while talking over the phone.

The incident had triggered a concern in the state as Nerium oleander, which is known as 'Arali' in Malayalam', is being widely used in temples.

Botany experts had pointed out that during extreme summer concentration of toxic compounds in flowers and leaves could be comparatively higher as the water contents in plants will be lower.