A child named Salman Rony, 5, has died in Birampur, Dinajpur, after a litchi seed became lodged in his throat while he was eating litchis.

The incident happened at midday on Tuesday, 14 May, in the Shimultali area of the upazila.

Salman was the son of Rashedul Islam of the area. He was in the pre-primary class at the local Shimultali Government Primary School.

The child's mother, Sajeda Khatun, said that at about 11.30am Salman and another child named Jibon went to eat litchis in a litchi orchard beside the house. A little later he came home behaving strangely. He could not speak, but signalled that something was stuck in his throat. When his condition worsened he was taken to Birampur Upazila Health Complex, where the doctor on duty declared him dead.

Jannatun Islam, a doctor at the upazila health complex, said the child had died before being brought to the health centre. "But we were not told anything about whether a litchi seed was stuck in his throat," she said.

Local municipal councillor Mosharraf Hossain Chowdhury said he had not gone to the scene, but the family had told him the child died of suffocation after a litchi seed lodged in his throat.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.