JAMMU, FEB.20. A mysterious disease has claimed the lives of seven children while several were reportedly ill in the two remote villages of the Ramnagar area of Udhampur district in Jammu region.

The disease which is fast taking the form of an epidemic took the state health department unawares and most of the people who were hit by it are poor.Tallking to The Hindu here today, the State Health Minister, Lal Singh, said: "We are faced with a difficult situation as more and more children are getting admitted to the hospitals and already many have lost their lives. At this stage we still have not been able to diagnose the killer disease which appears to be mysterious in nature. The symptoms of the disease are like measles.''

A specialised medical team has been sent to the villages where the `epidemic' has broken out to take the necessary action, according to the Minister. The Deputy Commissioner of Udhampur, Ashok Parmar has already admitted the death of seven children while over 60 children were still suffering from the disease.