Kolkata, Nov 24 : Six members of a family, including two children, are in critical condition after accidentally consuming food cooked with acid in Ghatal, West Midnapore district, police said on Monday.

They are undergoing treatment at SSKM Hospital in Kolkata. Two of them are children. The incident took place in Ghatal of the West Midnapore district on Sunday.

The police said that Panchanan Mandal, the health officer of Ghatal Panchayat Samiti, rushed to the spot on receiving the information.

Local police and administration officials also went to the area to investigate how this incident took place.

Preliminary investigation suggests that the incident happened after a meal was prepared using acid mistakenly assumed to be water. However, the police are also investigating whether it was a deliberate attempt to spike the food with acid in a bid to wipe out the entire family.

"Six members of a family fell seriously ill after consuming food. It is believed that acid was used instead of water to make the food. All of them, including two children, have been transferred to SSKM Hospital in Kolkata for treatment. Their condition is critical. An investigation has started," said a senior officer of West Midnapore district police.

According to local sources, Santu Sanyasi, a resident of Ratneshwarbati village of Manoharpur I Gram Panchayat in Ghatal, keeps acid at home as he is engaged in copper and silver work. As a result, acid was always kept in the house. On Sunday, a relative of Sanyasi Babu mistakenly poured the acid kept in the house, mistaking it for water. The person cooked rice and curry in it.

Shortly after eating, the family began to suffer severe stomach pain and vomiting. They started experiencing unbearable stomach pain. They were immediately admitted to the Ghatal Sub-divisional Hospital. When their condition deteriorated, the hospital authorities referred all six of them to the SSKM Hospital in Kolkata.

/IANS