All the patients, including five children, were first admitted to Rippon Hospital of Shimla and later shifted to Indira Gandhi Medical College after the intervention of Deputy Commissioner Ram Subhag Singh. The patients told ENS at the hospital's medicine ward that they had consumed ``Dhara'' brand of oil and were taken ill last week.

Doctors at IGMC admit that the patients showed symptoms of dropsy and were being given treatment accordingly. The district officials, however, claim that unless the report of the oil samples, sent to the laboratory at Kandaghat was received, they could not be sure if the patients were suffering from dropsy.

The oil stock from the retailer from whom the patients had purchased the oil has also been seized.

The Deputy Commissioner said that so far there has been no death in Shimla as a result of dropsy. He said efforts were being made to find out whether the suspected dropsy was caused by the consumption of the oil or other food items because except the families hailing from UP none of the locals who had bought oil from the same retailer has been affected.

Superintendent of Police O. C. Thakur said that a case has been registered and investigations have begun, but without the chemical analysis report, the police could not take action against the accused.

Even in case of Sudhir Kumar, who had died in the hospital few days ago, the postmortem report and the doctors' opinion on the cause of his death were awaited.

The patients claimed that their legs had swollen immediately after the consumption of the oil and later they faced respiratory problems. However, they were feeling better now.

Officials have advised the Medical Superintendent of the hospital to provide patients medicines free of cost.