Cancer spreading out in Punjab Village, Unkalia

Residents of a once flourishing village, Unkalia, in Punjab have appealed for help as an unusually high incidence of cancer has left over 25 dead in two years.

Twenty villagers are still battling the deadly disease, which has afflicted more men than women in Unkalia, around 25 kilometres from Mansa district, a village of about 5,000 people. Locals say there is a pattern to the deaths and suspect contaminated water as the main cause of the disease.

Despite the high mortality rate, the village lacks facilities for treatment of cancer at the local health centre. Villages have also threatened to resort to agitation if immediate action is not taken