Rautahat, May 20:

Four persons died of kala-azar in Paurai of Rautahat on Friday and Saturday.

Jina Magar, 3, Somnath Majhi, 65, Shankar Yeslami,12 and Amrit Shani, 40 of Paurai-3 died of the disease, a local Laxman Neupane said, adding that they died for want of treatment.

The disease has been spreading in the village for three weeks. Kala-azar has rendered 25 persons, including Lok Bahadur Magar, Asman Gole, Tara Maya Lama, Sone Lal Sahani, Kumar Rai, Nirmala Magar and Man Bahadur Moktan, critically ill, Neupane said.

The district health office has been informed about the spread of the disease, but noone has visited the village, another local Ashok Pahadi said.

Six kala-azar patients have been undergoing treatment at the District hospital, Pahadi said. “There is no doctor at the health post at Chandranigahapur so patients have to visit Gaur for treatment.

Effort to contact chief of the district hospital, Dr Brij Kishor Thakur, on the spread of kala-azar failed as he was not in the office.

Assistant vector controller at the hospital, Nandeshwor Chaudhari, said, he had no information about the outbreak of kala-azar.