India: Fears over deadly strain of brain infection

An outbreak of a mystery strain of encephalitis has killed nearly 500 children in northern India this year and seems to be getting worse, doctors said today.

Doctors in the Uttar Pradesh state, the centre of the outbreak, have been unable to identify the strain of the disease that has affected only children, killing 484 of them since the beginning of the year, said state Health Minister Anant Kumar Mishra.